"Going Away Shoes"

"Going Away Shoes" (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2009), by Jill McCorkle, is a little book (literally little, about 5" by 7") full of short stories that pack a big emotional punch. I have read several of McCorkle's novels ("Tending to Virginia," Ferris Beach") and short story collections over the years and have always enjoyed them. I also feel a (tenuous, granted) connection to her because she used to teach at the university where my daughter went for her undergraduate degree, and because she is the friend of a friend of a friend. So I picked this new book up expecting to like it, and I was not disappointed. Her stories are generally about women and their relationships with their husbands, lovers, children, and extended families. Those relationships are often troubled, but always valued for their human connections. McCorkle's stories remind us that we are all human, all flawed, but that there is redemption because of the fact that we are all connected, all enmeshed in our worlds of family and close friends. These stories allow us to accept imperfection and know that life and relationships are not "all or nothing"; they are messy and unpredictable, but there is a deep vein of human connection that allows us to keep going, and even be happy, despite the messiness. McCorkle is especially good at describing marriages that have survived challenges and crises but continue because of a deep connection that overrides the problems. I don't mean that the stories all have happy endings; some of them are scary, sad and wrenching. But the overall message or feeling of the collection is life-affirming.