Gambler's Fallacy

Although Judith Cowan's characters in Gambler's Fallacy all muddle through life in Trois-Rivières, their experiences could not be more individual and unique. Judith Cowan, here in her second collection of short works, introduces us to her perception of this small French city through the personalized experiences of lone story tellers. Cowan's passionate, and complex personal feelings towards life in Trois-Rivières is beautifully translated here, resounding with the reader a feeling of the ups and downs of small town hardships including regrets induced by life in the shadow of big town successes.

Cowan's intimate style which effortlessly merges the sentimental with the cynical, embeds the men and women we meet here in a meaningful context. They are not wholly likeable, or hateful. Cowan dulls the standard dichotomous personality (bad vs. good) by layering her characters in a realistic way that reflects thoroughly our human experience. This stripping motion is a refreshing and satisfying way to tell a story. Cowan understands our need to be discovered, and subtly fulfills this through her slow and steady character revelations.

In `The Launching' - the first, and for me the most powerful story in the collection, Cowan introduces us to Raymonde. Raymonde's anxiety is immediately obvious as she is awaiting guests to her lover's book launching. Raymonde's anxiety acts as a powerful motor in this story, compelling our attention away from immediate interactions, over to the other end of the bar where her lover, and accomplished poet, socializes with fans. She reveals herself and her heavy insecurities through her interpretations of his behavior. Raymonde emerges, though she began weak and nervous, surprisingly astute. I could not help but to admire Raymonde's conscious acceptance of her own vulnerability to this man. Cowan never introduces us personally to Russell Paradis, although we meet everyone close to him: his mother, best friend, agent, his closest adversary, and of course, his nervous girlfriend. Cowan makes Russell the central aspect of the story and still totally irrelevant at the same time. She reminds lovers of how extraneous the other can be when insecurities cause us to focus inward and stew in our own emotional juices. Raymonde makes Russell so important that it becomes irrational and soon too ridiculous even for her.

Overall, Judith Cowan's works of short fiction are extremely compelling. They can be likened to short bursts of flavour; she wastes no time in shoving the reader straightforwardly into the private internal dialogue of her truly fascinating creations. Although it is frustrating at times that the stories end in such haste, Cowan's emphasis on the personal discovery of her characters does not open the door to a lengthy narrative. Cowan uses the action of the stories as a context to display and describe the intimate qualities of the residence of Trois Rivières. When Cowan has created for us, the snapshot she desires, the story, needs no longer to continue. This limitation and self restraint on the part of this talented author is certainly admirable.

Only her second work of short stories, Gambler's Fallacy is an exceptional collection of fiction from Judith Cowan, and I would highly recommend it for anyone who appreciates well written, genuine and revealing storytelling that explores our shared human experience.