Daughters of Passion (1982)

   Julia O’Faolain Daughters of Passion (1982) A collection of short stories, all previously published in magazines. It’s magazine fiction alright, designed to engage interest while waiting to do something else, briefly startling, mildly provoking, witty in places, prurient in places, sentimental. Some of it rises above this level, but none of it’s memorable. O’Faolain writes skilfully, plots well, and draws vivid characters. The faint and not so faint melancholy of her stories reminds me of Mavis Gallant, but Gallant’s stories seem drawn from a deeper well. These stories are clever in the sense that student’s work is clever: one wants to give them a mark. I started this book on our trip to Brownsville last year, and stopped reading it somewhere in Texas. I finished it this morning, and can barely remember the last story. ** (2002)