Bones of the Story

Sandra Arnold’s The Bones of the Story immediately draws the reader in with its premise concerning the mysterious death of a child. We are invited to discover how the event haunts those who witnessed what passed. The stories reveal the ugly underbelly of an apparently sweet Blytonesque world where children derive pleasure from gobstoppers and daring each other to take risks. There’s Bryan, who chooses to dance when he is expected to become a successful rugby player like his father, a man who would rather see his son dead than following the wrong path. We hear: Bryan’s father always referred to his bad temper as something separate from himself, which shows the character’s vulnerability in addition to his flaws. There’s Joyce, whose imagination has her soaring to dizzying heights; and Deb, who follows the other children’s lead, always fearing her father will discover her antics. There’s Angela who may not be as naive as she seems. There’s Martin, silenced by shock, who tames trauma the only way he knows how. And Adrian who wasn’t even born when the story unfolded years earlier, but perhaps had the most to lose had it unravelled a different way. From the outset, this novella-in-flash is imbued with an irresistible tension that urges the reader to turn the page until the story reaches its surprising conclusion, leaving shadows that are ghostly and ghastly in equal part.

– Nod Ghosh, author of The Crazed Wind

Format: Paperback
Pages: 43
Imprint: Small New Zealand Publisher
Publication date: 09/07/2023