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del.icio.us'Forgetting' is story to remember
BY LISA MCLENDON
The Wichita Eagle
"The Story of Forgetting" by Stefan Merrill Block (Random House, 313 pages, $25)
"Uplifiting" probably isn't the word that first comes to mind when discussing Alzheimer's disease, yet Block has created a beautiful and uplifting debut novel centering on the brain-robbing illness.
"The Story of Forgetting" is several stories woven into one: the story of Seth, a teenage boy whose mother is stricken with early-onset Alzheimer's; the story of Abel, who lost his brother to the same disease; the story of the 18-century Duke of Mapplethorpe, whose genetic mutation (and prolific breeding) doomed hundreds down the line to early-onset Alzheimer's; and the story of Isidora, a fantastical kingdom where everyone is blissfully forgetful of the past.
The stories meld well, tying together history, family secrets and medical science; the characters, smart (and smart-mouthed) Seth in particular, have depth and likability despite their imperfections.
"The Story of Forgetting" is an engrossing, well-written exploration of what it means to remember -- and forget.
Mikrokosmos reading and release event
Mikrokosmos, the literary and art journal of Wichita State University, will hold its annual release party Friday. The event is free and open to the public. This year's winners, whose works will be read at the event, are Justin Nicholes for fiction, Randy Phillis for poetry and Dale Stuckey for nonfiction.
If you go
MIKROKOSMOS RELEASE EVENT
What: Readings from this year's edition of Mikrokosmos
Where: Watermark Books, 4601 E. Douglas
When: 7 p.m. Friday
How much: Free. Copies of Mikrokosmos are $5 and donations will be accepted.
For more information, e-mail mikrokosmos@wichita.edu.
