Alex Epstein and "flash fiction"

blue has no south

A participant at our 2011 Festival, I've only recently had a chance to get through Alex Epstein's entire 2010 collection, blue has no south (Clockroot Books).  Each little story takes up just one page and like Lydia Davis, Epstein's stories are largely self-contained and thought-provoking. Unlike Davis, though, Epstein's work is less cerebral and has a more pragmatic bent to it. Also, his fiction explores themes related to angels, mysticism, books, journeys, geography and mysterious animals.

Further Observations on the Small Bang Theory


For more than eight years they've been sleeping in separate bedrooms, but it cannot yet be determined with complete certainty if the distance between their dreams is expanding , or, looking back, shrinking.


Or


The Crippled Angel

The crippled angel sat in a wheelchair especially designed for winged creatures of his kind and chain-smoked. From his usual spot in the plaza in front of the museum, he observed with concern those coming in. He tried to guess which of them intended to hang himself in one of the exhibition halls.

Born in St-Petersburg, Epstein moved to Israel at 8 years of age. He writes in Hebrew and the above collection was translated by Becka Mara McKay. His latest work, Lunar Savings Time, published by , Interlink (Clockroot is an Interlink imprint) was published in the spring.