Silhouette
by
Paul G. Swingle
Literary Fiction
Publisher: Independently published
Publication Date: August 6, 2021
Page count: 144
Publisher: Independently published
Publication Date: August 6, 2021
Page count: 144
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SYNOPSIS:
On the night of a blue moon, while walking his dog, middle-aged widower Jim sees Gladys on the roof of a neighboring apartment building and is inspired to speak with her. There’s just one problem: she can’t hear him.
Indeed, Jim isn’t even sure that Gladys truly exists—that she isn’t just a rooftop patio umbrella silhouetted against the moon. Hampered by debilitating social anxiety, he cannot work up the courage to even wave.
Yet Jim returns to the same spot night after night, and Gladys—who is indeed real—sees him and becomes equally interested. She even contributes to their “conversation,” though he cannot hear her either. And while Gladys struggles with her own demons—self-loathing and depression—she is lifted by Jim’s attention, even as she describes how difficult her life has been.
Two characters, driven by sadness and a longing to connect. Will they?
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READ AN EXCERPT:
Tonight, I saw a rooftop patio umbrella move. Or was it a
woman? It’s May 31, the night of the blue moon. I was taking my dog Gus for his
nightly walk. On the rooftop of a building across the street from my apartment,
against the light of the huge moon, I saw the silhouette of a patio umbrella.
I’d been seeing that umbrella on that roof for weeks—months, maybe. Every time
I walked the dog or snuck a puff on my cigar, it was there. Immobile and
static. Always in the same place, always visible against either the daytime sky
or the city-lit night. I had thought nothing of it, other than wondering if
anyone ever used that patio. But tonight, I saw the umbrella silhouette move.
“Son of a bitch,” I said. “What the hell is that? Was it the wind?” Startled, I
tried to shake off an eerie feeling. Had the umbrella really moved? I don’t
care for rooftop patios myself. I’ve been to 4 a few. You have to drag yourself
up the stairs, hoping no one else is there when you arrive, so you can have a
bit of solace. I always forget something downstairs.
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REVIEW:
5 stars!
Will a chance connection across an urban boulevard bring
two lonely strangers a happy ending?
Silhouette by author Paul G. Swingle is a wonderful
gem of a novella that, once read, will not be soon forgotten. Occurring over a
period of little more than a week’s time, it is the story of two lonely people
coming to terms with their condition and talking themselves up to remedy the
situation with a simple wave.
I was immediately drawn to the story when the main character,
Jim, described how Gladys caught his attention. He was out walking his dog,
Gus, under a full moon when he was surprised to see the folded tabletop
umbrella on the rooftop patio of the apartment building from his move. Until
the small movement caught his eye, he hadn’t paid the dark figure up above any
overt attention; it was just part of the background. And at first, he
questioned whether he’d seen any movement at all. But, without a breath of a
breeze to cause something like that to flutter, he suddenly realized that all
this time, it had been a woman standing at the railing, perhaps watching the
sunset, but he thought she was observing him. Gladys, who had until now been
dismissed as patio furniture, was, in actuality, watching Jim walk his dog. In
fact, she had noted the regularity of their walks and had been timing her
rooftop sojourns to coincide with their schedule to observe, share, and speculate
about the unknown pair.
Each one of the pair’s inner monologues soon expanded to
include the mysterious “other.” Jim talks to Gus about his desire to validate the
connection with the woman on the roof with a simple wave but wavers, unsure of how
it would be received. Gladys, too, cannot bring herself to make a deliberate
overture either. With each passing walk, readers learn of their deep inner
turmoil and need to reach out in their silent, shared misery, even as one party’s
thoughts turn to a darker, more permanent resolution.
I recommend SILHOUETTE to readers of literary fiction. (And isn't that one awesome cover?!)
Dr. Paul G. Swingle can be considered one of the founding fathers of Clinical Psychoneurophysiology, one of a select few, directly responsible for bringing Neurotherapy out of university labs and clinics to the general populace in the 1980s.
His academic positions include, Professor of Psychology at the University of Ottawa from 1972 to 1997, Lecturer in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School from 1991 to 1998, Associate Attending Psychologist at McLean Hospital (Boston), and Head of the Clinical Psychophysiology Service McLean Hospital (Boston). Professor Swingle was also Clinical Supervisor at the University of Ottawa from 1987 to 1997 and Chairman of the Faculty of Child Psychology from 1972 to 1977. Dr. Swingle is a Registered Psychologist in British Columbia and is Board Certified in Biofeedback and Neurotherapy. He is actively involved in research and practice. His numerous publications include nine books and numerous peer-reviewed journal publications.
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2 comments:
Thanks for hosting!
I liked the review, thank you.
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