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Peripheral Visions and Other Stories by Nancy Christie

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What do you do when the hand that life deals you isn't the one you wanted?


In Peripheral Visions and Other Stories, the characters choose to play the best game they can with the cards they've received. For some, it's making the most of the circumstances in which they find themselves, even if it's not the life they planned. For others, it's following an unconventional path-not the easiest course or the one that others would take, but the one that's right for them. But they never lose hope that life will get better if they can just hold on.

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Peripheral Visions and Other Stories was a finalist in the 2021 Eric Hoffer Book Awards, winner of the Bronze Award in the 2020 Foreword INDIES competition, a finalist in the 2020 N.N. Light Book Awards (short story), and won second place in the Florida Writers Association 2018 Royal Palm Literary Awards (RPLA) competition, with three of the stories having also earned contest placements.


Details

Genre: Fiction 

Formats: Paperback and Ebook

ISBN:978-1-950730-40-7

Publication Date: May 5, 2020

Awards and Honors

Praise for Nancy Christie

Liliyana Shadowlyn—5 stars—Great collection. I loved this collection. They’re quick, easy reads, but it’s easy to get lost in each story. The characters are unique, with a decent amount of depth for a short story, and the way they face their challenges really lets each one shine. Each story will linger with you a little while after you finish, the emotions that flowed off the page still floating around, but not in a bad way. I really liked how Christie was able to bring such emotion and depth in such a short space. A great collection, I highly recommend it.
Terri—Booklymatters—4 stars: "An affecting and poignant collection of short stories, each of them featuring strong characterization and a struggle, of some sort, with deep and emotional impact, arising out of the kinds of quandaries ordinary people – people just like us – can end-up finding themselves lost in. Several of the stories, heart-tuggingly moving in their quietly-evocative treatment of characters suffering from the ravages of grief, loss, loneliness and despair, stood out for me in this collection, including the excellent cover-story, “Peripheral Visions”, which tells the tale of an isolated elderly woman, embracing suddenly-visible possibilities in a life long-mired in stagnation... A sensitive and stirring collection, this book is not to be missed by lovers of short-fiction, particularly those who enjoy quiet, powerful characterization, as exhibited by authors such as Alice Munro, and Ann Tyler, and a thoughtful rousing look at the complexities of human emotion."
“This collection of stories by Christie presents interesting characters and how they deal with the less-than-ideal circumstances of their lives… Most of the stories deal with some form of hurt, many including trauma or tragic loss. However, the underlying theme throughout these stories is not the hurt so much but the search for hope… Christie is obviously an accomplished writer… Overall, this collection will appeal to almost anyone who enjoys short stories, and it is likely that many readers will be looking forward to what Christie offers them next.” US Review of Books—Review by Mark Heisey
In her recent short story collection, Peripheral Visions and Other Stories, Nancy Christie assembles an amalgamation of brief moments. Aside from the title story, each tale unfolds over mere hours in the life of each character, but those hours are full of the years preceding them. They are laden with sadness, fear, resignation, and hope. Christie has done the work; she’s taken the time to get to know and understand her characters so that her readers can feel the weight of the choices—and in many ways, the absence of choice—that brought them to these hours, showcasing her adeptness of capturing the life that occurs almost beyond our view.  ​​Natalie Metropulos,  Sundress Blog
"I first became acquainted with Nancy Christie's stories as fiction editor for The Chaffin Journal, an internationally-known literary journal. Reading her delightful 'Aunt Aggie and the Make-up Lady,' I recognized real talent in its finely-drawn characters and velvet-smooth style. Later, when I had a chance to read her Traveling Left of Center and Other Stories, I discovered that 'Aunt Aggie' was not an anomaly; the collection, detailing the struggles of individuals who found it difficult to 'fit in,' revealed the same level of perception and style. When Nancy asked me to take a look at her latest collection, I was excited. And Peripheral Visions and Other Stories did not disappoint. In fact, I became so engaged in the stories that I read the complete manuscript in one sitting...  Nancy presents us with a memorable cast of characters engaged in a beguiling group of situations in her collection. I recommend Peripheral Visions and Other Stories highly." Hal Blythe, Co-Director, Teaching & Learning Center, Eastern Kentucky University  "Nancy Christie's stories are some of the best of modern short story fiction. She engages the reader from the start and whether with gentle humour or deep sadness, imbues her stories with emotion. This collection provides a thoroughly satisfying read." Rosemary J. Kind, Managing Director, Alfie Dog Fiction  "Nancy writes wonderful short stories with believable characters finding meaning in the stuff of real life--broken relationships, difficult situations, human longings. I highly recommend this book." John Feister, Editor in Chief, St. Anthony Messenger  "Diverse and vibrant characters populate Nancy Christie's poignant stories about loss, deception, heartbreak, and joy. From tender or bittersweet to uplifting with a splash of humor, this collection cannot help but touch your heart and bring a smile or a tear." Carol L. Wright, editor, Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC and Bethlehem Writers Roundtable magazine
“The stories in Nancy Christie’s Peripheral Visions … are fictions that focus on dramatic moments and emotions rather than earth-shattering conflicts, and as such, they are always appealing, and more than a little heartbreaking.” Clifford Garstang, author of In an Uncharted Country and What the Zhang Boys Know (winner of the 2013 Library of Virginia Award for Fiction), and editor of Everywhere Stories: Short Fiction from a Small Planet
“A memorable cast of characters engaged in a beguiling group of situations…I recommend Peripheral Visions and Other Stories highly.” Hal Blythe, Co-Director, Teaching & Learning Center, Eastern Kentucky University
“Wonderful delights of the strange and the sadly familiar. … a fun read from this promising writer.” Michael M. Pacheco, author of Of Angels, Demons and Chopped Chorizo​
“Wonderful short stories with believable characters finding meaning in the stuff of real life—broken relationships, difficult situations, human longings. I highly recommend this book.” John Feister, Editor in Chief, St. Anthony Messenger​
 “Nancy Christie’s stories are the dichotomy of youth and age, of experience and memory, of harmony and friction, of life and death. They are old relations. To read Peripheral Visions and Other Stories is to carefully sort through a found box of dusty photographs, to answer old questions and discover new ones. This book brings you closer to your own family.” Lee L. Krecklow, author of The Expanse Between​
“Nancy Christie masterfully spins tales of ordinary people confronted with the extraordinary circumstances of modern life, and she does so with a warmth that belies the sometimes cold reality of lives at a crossroads and people on the brink.” Dean Johnson, author of Californium and Delicate Men: Stories​​
“Nancy Christie’s stories open up worlds that exist just off to the side of the ordinary one we all inhabit, reinvigorating the reader’s senses by revealing what we often don’t see in the peripheries of our vision.” Christopher Barzak, author of Wonders of the Invisible World
“Reading Nancy Christie’s collection is like spending time in a town inhabited by familiar-feeling residents who first pique your curiosity then draw you into their lives… we get to know characters who seem as though they could be our neighbors, coworkers, relatives and friends, facing challenges that elicit our empathy and reveal facets of our shared humanity.” Soramimi Hanarejima, author of Visits to the Confabulatorium
“Some of the best of modern short story fiction… She engages the reader from the start and whether with gentle humour or deep sadness, imbues her stories with emotion. This collection provides a thoroughly satisfying read.” Rosemary J. Kind, Managing Director, Alfie Dog Fiction

Reviews