“The Cage Keeper and Other Stories” is a collection of seven short stories by Andre Dubus III. The originality of this collection lies in the power of the characters and in the author’s microscopic view of the human condition.
Externally, the stories in this collection focus on characters from the harsher walks of life with some link to captivity. Most of the characters, main or minor, are prison workers, or have spent some time in prison, or are going to prison shortly. Internally, however, the true imprisonment of the characters comes from within and from their vulnerability to a pending issue or an unresolved life problem. In all the stories, mixed emotions are intermingled as the characters seek acceptance of themselves and others.
The first story, “The Guardian of the Cage”, is the one with the most developed plot. Even so, the reader is more impressed with the characters of the story than with the plot, which involves an escaped convict and his hostage, a young prison guard.
The second story, “The Duckling Girl”, is about an incest victim who willingly accepts more abuse from cruel teenage boys.
The third story, “Wolves in the Swamp”, is about the coming-of-age of a boy who goes hunting alone.
The fourth story, “Forky”, is about an ex-con who has served seven years. While making out with a woman he has picked up at a bar, he is reminded of a fellow prisoner who has reminded him of his brother.
The fifth story, “Mountains,” is told from the point of view of Sally, a waitress who loves a Vietnam vet with post-traumatic stress syndrome.
Sixth Story, “White Trees, Hammer Moon”, is about a man named Rory, a loser in life and a father figure who is about to go to prison. In the story, Rory ruins a camping trip with two kids in the New Hampshire mountains.
The seventh story, “Last Dance”, is about a turtle hunt in which the young character Reilly is reminiscent of a woman while the turtle hunt is described in detail.
“The Cage Keeper and Other Stories” is a paperback with 224 pages and ISBN: 9780375727740.
The outstanding features of the book are the haunting real-life characters in the stories and the author’s eloquence and mastery of the use of the English language.
The author, Andre Dubus III, after earning a degree in sociology, decided to write and later worked as a bounty hunter, private investigator, carpenter, bartender, actor, and teacher. Andre Dubus III has won numerous literary awards and prizes, from a Pushcart Award to being a finalist for the 1999 National Book Award. He lives in Massachusetts with his family and teaches in Emerson College’s MFA writing program and at the University of Tufts. Besides “The Cage Keeper and Other Stories”, he has novels like “Bluesman” and “House of Sand and Fog”.
I am deeply impressed with the writer’s insight and empathy into the spirits of his characters. Any aspiring fiction writer will learn a lot about character development by reading Andre Dubus III, especially “The Cage Keeper and Other Stories.”
