Naomi Ishiguro's 'Escape Routes'

I didn't feel like buying a hard copy of Naomi Ishiguro's 'Escape Routes' (2020). Waited for the e-book to be released—that never happened fast enough, so I reserved a hard copy from our trusty National Library, and had to wait three weeks for the one of the three available copies to be returned so that I could borrow it. 

The nine short stories drew on the world of fairy tales and that itself is enough to make me give it a go. The annoying thing, it's first published in a hard copy, and this means a hefty book that I might not appreciate on the limited shelf space. A borrowed read from the library is the best. Thankfully, short stories tend to make most books bearable. (Reviews here, here and here.)

The opening story 'Wizards' didn't draw me in. It was all over the place, gave me details that I didn't feel I needed. Perhaps the author wanted to paint the thoughts and inner worlds of the ultimate two protagonists Peter and Alfie, but it was just a tad too much. I feel that these stories are not exactly fairy-tale-like. Neither are they fantasy. It's at best, surreal. But what do I know? There must be tremendous pressure in carrying this surname and also calling herself a writer when her father is Kazuo Ishiguro. In an interview with The Guardian on 1 February, 2020, the author explained why she chose her debut book to be filled with whimsical short stories.

I’ve always liked short stories, because I’ve always liked fairytales and folk tales, and Angela Carter has been a huge thing for me. I’m always influenced by kids’ stuff as well – it’s a refusal to grow up properly! Also I love music, and short stories are like songs – so I think of an anthology like an album.

I skipped stories and consecutively read 'The Rat Catcher I', 'The Rat Catcher II: The King', and 'The Rat Catcher III: The New King and the Old'. These stories are spread out and interspersed between others. I took a chance and read three back-to-back. Luckily I did. I wouldn't have wanted to re-read two stories all over again just to get to the third. They're connected, and are a continuation of one another. I'm not sure what element of narrative surprise there is by not putting them one after the other, or putting them into one story with three chapters.

Okay lah. These stories are somewhat similar to fairy tales. Not totally so. There's a little moral tale in each. Naomi Ishiguro's writing isn't as stuffy as her father's. I would read her future writing just to be sure! This debut collection of short stories is promising. 

I love 'Bear'. Hahaha. It's essentially a silly giant cheap stuffed toy Bear some village auction sold to the protagonist and his wife for £65. The wife was totally enamored with the bear; the husband was skeptical and tried his best to accommodate his wife and the stuffed toy. Over time, it took centerstage in the couple's lives. The wife moved it around the house. It became the focal point of the husband's insecurities and unease. Spoiler- the bear isn't alive; there isn't a supernatural element to it either. It's not so much a story about a bear, but rather the growth of the couple as a unit, or the lack of understanding after the honeymoon bliss and the newly-wed years. 

What was it about his presence that caused me such profound difficulties? It couldn't simply be my dislike of his fundamental uselessness. I even forced myself to consider, during one of those too-hot summer nights, lying next to my silent wife, whether I was somehow jealous of the bear? And yet, as I stared hard at his woven, smiling snout and at the worn-out stitching on his shoulder, I simply couldn't understand how such a pointless creature could provoke such a passionate emotion.

It wasn't until the next morning - as my wife was pouring out the coffee and smoothing back my hair with an expression almost like concern - that I realised precisely what it was about the bear that truly troubled me.