Great Canadian writing out of Quebec, which features stories about
families in their most private moments
Swing in the House paints an utterly contemporary portrait of Canadian
families. Anand pulls back the curtains to reveal the unspoken
complexities within the modern home, from sibling rivalries to
fracturing marriages, casual racisms to damaged egos, hidden
homosexuality to mental illness. Each of these stories offers a deftly
constructed morality play. In the novella-length title story, a young
mother timidly explores the possibilities of an affair to alleviate the
suffocations of a loveless marriage, to detrimental effect. In
"Indelible Markers," a girl vacationing in Greece learns that growing up
with a schizophrenic father has affected her relationship with men. In
"Something Steady," a lonely, mentally challenged teen vents his anger
on a co-worker's boyfriend. Throughout, Anand's incisive intelligence,
sharp prose, and sly wit breathe dark undercurrents into these 17
cautionary tales.