How We Disappear: Novella and Stories by by Tara Lynn Masih

My Rating:4.5⭐

How We Disappear by Tara Lynn Masih is a collection of twelve short stories and one novella with a common theme of disappearance. Often those who disappear do so of their own accord, some are taken from their dear ones and some choose to reinvent themselves shedding their old lives. The concept of disappearance takes on many forms in these stories which are diverse in content, context, setting and characters.

While we have a famous author whose 12-day disappearance made headlines ( “Agatha: A life in Unauthorized Fragments”) we also have a missing child who is found thanks to the skillful observation skills of a woman who specializes in identifying perpetrators from camera footage, a “professional recognizer” in the police department (”What You Can't See in Pictures”). A loner finds companionship in a ghost town tourist attraction in the Depression era (“Fleeing Gravity”).In “Delight”, a Puerto Rican shopkeeper find love and a sense of worth with a tourist in her beach town. In “Bird Man”, a daughter travels to Europe to visit the grave of her father who perished during WWII. “How Do You Thank a River” follows a freed Black man’s thoughts as he crosses the Red River. “If You Had Stopped” revolves around a woman selling fish on the side of the highway, hoping that a customer would stop and purchase her wares before they disappear down the road. A deceased mother finds a unique medium to communicate with her grieving daughter. (“Billy Said This Really Happened to Lucy”). Women find their way into a new life in a new town in an attempt to start over (“Salt”, “In a Sulfate Mist”, “Those Who Have Gone”). In the Siberian Taiga, a hunter seeks shelter in an abandoned cabin only to discover a series of notes written by the previous owner (“Notes to The World”). The final novella, “An Aura Surrounds That Night”, revolves around a young girl whose life changes irrevocably after the disappearance of her younger sister at the local fair.

As in most short story collections, some of the stories were more appealing than the others. But as a collection, Tara Lynn Masih’s How We Disappear is impressive. My favorite stories were “Delight”, “Agatha: A life in Unauthorized Fragments”, Notes to The World” and “Bird Man” though I did enjoy the rest of them as well. Tara Lyn Masih’s prose is beautiful. Masterfully crafted and immersive, these stories are about more than disappearance- they are about life, love, loss and hope. I loved the author’s novel, My Real Name is Hanna and was eager to read more of her work and I must say that this collection does not disappoint!

Many thanks to Press 53 and the author for the digital review of this amazing collection of short stories. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.