UnVeiled Voices
by Dr. Sandra Walton Wilson
Genre: Literary Fiction / Short Stories
ISBN: 9798891325203
Print Length: 298 pages
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Reviewed by Eric Mayrhofer
A kaleidoscopic short story collection thriving on empathy
It’s not unusual for stories about humanity’s connectedness to mirror that connection in their structure. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell is a sterling example that comes to mind. In that book, Mitchell amplifies the experiences of multiple oppressed or under-appreciated communities in one epic, splintered narrative. In UnVeiled Voices, author Dr. Sandra Walton Wilson may keep them separate in their own short stories but vividly paints every shade of the human condition.
This collection gives voice to figures too often hidden by history and popular society, like trans boys struggling to be themselves or a girl experiencing the first hints of abuse from boys on the playground. As Wilson so beautifully puts in her foreword, “Everyone has a story to tell.”
Those stories don’t always offer clear or comfortable answers. In the opening story (which cleverly hooks readers with its title, “The Finale (1864)”), a woman named Hannah reflects on her life as a plantation slave, where she is forced to sleep with another slave named Solomon when she comes of age. In a series of unnerving scenes written with the simplicity of a fairy tale, Hannah eschews the predictable reaction—revulsion with and repulsion from her coerced rapist—and instead “begins to appreciate is gentleness… She knew that Solomon had fallen in love with her.” It forces readers to question their judgments on intimacy and consider how true love can take root in environments where freedoms of choice are, at best, a luxury.
Meanwhile, the story about the girl on the playground asks how and when society plants the ideas that result in abuse against women. Titled “First Kiss: Sexual Abuse/Love? (1956),” the main character Joy draws the unwanted attention of a boy at school after her parents encourage her to leave Valentine’s Day cards for her classmates. Aside from the feelings of insecurity and uncertainty in assault narratives, however, readers find that Joy “kept an eye on [her classmate] and made sure she stayed in a group of girls…After about a week Joy stopped looking for [him]…After about two weeks Joy began to enjoy recess time once again.” Some of the stories in UnVeiled Voices stir up some uneasy feelings, but Wilson is skilled at elevating the overlooked experiences of humanity’s resilience.
There is a visible tug of war going on in the book between its compelling stories and the facts that inspire them. Some stories have context added as notes right after a story, while others provide information in appendices. The titles of the stories and poems can take on a more academic tone than the rest of the text too, so it keeps us questioning what Wilson knows. While some of the notes work to their desired effects, they sometimes made me wonder if they were there because the story didn’t dig deep enough thematically, like the story of Asinath from the Bible finding a suitor.
As with Mitchell’s work, UnVeiled Voices is a work crafted with great feeling, fueled by kindness and understanding. Readers will be moved by the heart of this collection.
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