Best of
Modern-Classics

1999

Wyoming Stories


Annie Proulx - 1999
    On the heels of last year's mesmerising film adaptation of 'Brokeback Mountain' comes this beautiful, single volume collection of Annie Proulx's celebrated Wyoming stories. Inventive, compassionate and wildly funny, they explore the unbreakable bond between a people and their land in rich and robust language, with an eye for detail unparalleled in American fiction. In 'The Contest', the men of Elk Tooth, Wyoming, vow to put aside their razors for two seasons and wait to see who has the longest beard come the 4th of July. Deb Sipple, the moving protagonist of 'That Trickle Down Effect', finds that his opportunism - and his smoking habit - lead to massive destruction. And 'What Kind of Furniture Would Jesus Pick?' is the story of Gilbert Wolfscale, whose rabid devotion to his ranch drives away his wife and sons. Every story of this stunning collection is a tribute to Proulx's wit, her knowledge of the West, and her profound sympathy for characters who must use sheer will and courage to make it in such unforgiving territory.

The Voyage


Philip Caputo - 1999
    Pulitzer Prize-winning author Philip Caputo has written a timeless novel about the dangerous reverberating effects of long held family secrets.On a June morning in 1901, Cyrus Braithwaite orders his three sons to set sail from their Maine home aboard the family's forty-six-foot schooner and not return until September. Though confused and hurt by their father's cold-blooded actions, the three brothers soon rise to the occasion and embark on a breathtakingly perilous journey down the East Coast, headed for the Florida Keys.Almost one hundred years later, Cyrus's great-granddaughter Sybil sets out to uncover the events that transpired on the voyage. Her discoveries about the Braithwaite family and the America they lived in unfolds into a stunning tale of intrigue, murder, lies and deceit.

Ross Macdonald


Tom Nolan - 1999
    The author draws on 40 years worth of correspondence and hundreds of interviews to develop this portrait.

Collected Stories


Lily Brett - 1999
    Always under the shadow of their terrible history, the closeknit Jewish community portrayed in these stories tackles life with exuberance, passion and extraordinary humour.