"SELECTED PLAYS," by David Kranes, Level 4 Press, $12.95, 490 pages (f)
Fathers and their children and their relationships in flames are central to David Kranes’s "Selected Plays."
These are the kind of plays to read not to escape, but to examine dysfunctional relationships and learn from them. They are a reminder that relationships with others, especially within families, are what create meaning in life.
One example of dysfunctional family relationships is in “Cantrell.” Chrissy, a young teen, seeks to learn how to be a hitman from middle-aged Cantrell. Chrissy’s foster father abuses her, and seeing Cantrell as a father figure, she struggles to have a platonic relationship with him.
Cantrell refuses her sexual advances, but seeks to help her by disposing of Chrissy’s foster father. In the end, Chrissy feels sad and angry, unable to express exactly why, but finally accepts that Cantrell can protect her as a father should.
In “House, Bridge, Fountain, Gate,” Neil visits his father Stephen in the country. Previously, their relationship had been distant, but when Stephen reveals that he has been reading Neil’s published poetry, Neil is touched by his father’s love.
Still, Neil is upset to find out that his father has killed other men for his job. Their honesty doesn’t magically bring them closer, but they struggle to understand and care for one another.
The author's characters are wonderfully bizarre. In “House, Bridge, Fountain, Gate,” an Eastern European woman writes the stories of her ancestors in blood on skulls. In “Cantrell,” a man escapes death by having another man act as his impostor. Howie of “Future Tense” has a photographic memory and incredible intellect, but remains depressed.
These incredible characters don’t alienate the reader, but bring them into something fantastical where everyone has ordinary problems with family and love.
Along with a keen eye for family conflict, Kranes’ descriptions are poetic. Of a scene with distinct shadows he writes, "It is a Rembrandt painting."
An athletic and good-natured teen is “overly muscular — has a home gym. He is a like a good student ... at a military school.”
Kranes’ plays feature fantastical, secular characters in mundane family conflicts with midwestern settings. There is quite a bit of swearing throughout the plays.
IF YOU GO ...
What: David Kranes reading and book signing
When: Tuesday, Aug. 9, 7 p.m.
Where: The King's English, 1511 S. 1500 East, Salt Lake City
Web: kingsenglish.com
Rachel Helps is an eternal English master's student with a passion for old books and video gaming and a bachelor's in psychology. Her book reviews are also on on Goodreads.com and her gaming articles are on thepretentiousgamer.blogspot.com.