Once You Break a Knuckle: Stories - Softcover

Full of life . . . Emotionally powerful . . .Wilson, in the tradition of modern masters like Peter Taylor and Edward P. Jones, makes great use of the underutilized flash-forward to contextualize all that has come before, and to convey the sometimes horrific consequences of what he has just shown us. "The New York Times Book Review"

A massive achievement "The Guardian"

The stories patiently gather the full power of a novel. By the time he's done, Mr. Wilson has mapped this place as precisely as any cartographer could. "The New York Times"

Powerful . . . [Wilson writes] with strength, passion (a not unmixed affection), wit, and compelling imagery . . . Will appeal to readers of Russell Banks and Daniel Woodrell. "Booklist"

A master of atmospheric detail. "Publishers Weekly"

There's no denying its raw power. "Kirkus Reviews"

Seems to tap effortlessly into a collective subconscious. "The Globe and Mail""

"Full of life . . . Emotionally powerful . . .Wilson, in the tradition of modern masters like Peter Taylor and Edward P. Jones, makes great use of the underutilized flash-forward to contextualize all that has come before, and to convey the sometimes horrific consequences of what he has just shown us." --The New York Times Book Review

"A massive achievement" --The Guardian

"The stories patiently gather the full power of a novel. By the time he's done, Mr. Wilson has mapped this place as precisely as any cartographer could." --The New York Times

"Powerful . . . [Wilson writes] with strength, passion (a not unmixed affection), wit, and compelling imagery . . . Will appeal to readers of Russell Banks and Daniel Woodrell." --Booklist

"A master of atmospheric detail." --Publishers Weekly

"There's no denying its raw power." --Kirkus Reviews

"Seems to tap effortlessly into a collective subconscious." --The Globe and Mail

In the remote Kootenay Valley in western Canada, good people sometimes do bad things. Two bullied adolescents sabotage a rope swing, resulting in another boy's death. A heartbroken young man chooses not to warn his best friend about an approaching car. Sons challenge fathers and break taboos.

Crackling with tension and propelled by jagged, cutting dialogue, D. W. Wilson's stories reveal to us how our best intentions can be doomed to fail or injure, how our loves can fall short or mislead us, how even friendship-especially friendship-can be something dangerously temporary. An intoxicating cocktail of adrenaline and vulnerability, doggedness and dignity, Once You Break a Knuckle explores the courage it takes just to make it through another day.