Nov 19

Nov 19 Holler, Child

Author: LaToya Watkins
Publisher: Tiny Reparations Books
Goodreads | The StoryGraph

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Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the full review.

Cover Description

In Holler, Child's eleven brilliant stories, LaToya Watkins presses at the bruises of guilt, love, and circumstance. Each story introduces us to a character irrevocably shaped by place and reaching toward something--hope, reconciliation, freedom.

In "Cutting Horse," the appearance of a horse in a man's suburban backyard places a former horse breeder in trouble with the police. In "Holler, Child," a mother is forced into an impossible position when her son gets in a kind of trouble she knows too well from the other side. And "Time After" shows us the unshakable bonds of family as a sister journeys to find her estranged brother--the one who saved her many times over.

Throughout Holler, Child, we see love lost and gained, and grief turned to hope. Much like LaToya Watkins's acclaimed debut novel, Perish, this collection peers deeply into lives of women and men experiencing intimate and magnificent reckonings--exploring how race, power, and inequality map on the individual, and demonstrating the mythic proportions of everyday life.

TL;DR Review

Holler, Child was exactly the kind of short story collection I’m always hoping every single one will be: emotional, hard-hitting, with excellent characters you root for despite their flaws.

For you if: You love short stories (even if, or maybe especially if, you’re picky about them).

Full Review

Holler, Child was longlisted for the 2023 National Book Award, but IMO, it should definitely have made the shortlist. This was exactly the kind of short story collection I’m always hoping every single one will be: emotional, hard-hitting, with excellent characters you root for despite their flaws.

Each of the stories in this collection examines love and grief in different ways, exploring the ways those can be so different and yet also the same. They all feature Black characters in West Texas. They’ll all break your heart a little. So many instances of lost potential and cyclical misfortune, but also so much humanity and acute love that they often feel hopeful, despite it all.

There’s a ton to unpack here, and I think it would benefit from multiple reads. But if you’re a short story lover (even if you’re picky), definitely give this one a go.