Author Scott Blackwoodยs characters find hope in the darkest of places. Many of the stories in his 2001 collection In the Shadow of Our House end on a note that is depressing only at first glance. ยItยs so often that someone reads it and says, ยWow, thatยs just unremittingly dark.ย But I donยt think thatยs the case,ย says Blackwood, who recently took a job directing the Creative Writing Department at Roosevelt University in Chicago. In one story, a pregnant teen struggles with, among other things, the reality that the father of her child may not be the best candidate for the job. In another, a boy combats his frustrations with his fatherยs infidelity by sending a baseball into his brotherยs face. But as troubled as these kids seem, Blackwoodยs presentation forces sympathy before judgment. ยTheyยre caught up in circumstance,ย he says. ยThey make decisions based on what they know at the time.ย Blackwood reads today with local poet Brian Nicolet at Poison Girlยs Poison Pen series. 8:30 p.m. 1641 Westheimer. For information, call 713-527-9929 or visit www.myspace.com/poisongirlbar. Free.
Thu., July 31, 8:30 p.m., 2008
This article appears in Jul 31 – Aug 6, 2008.