Waiting at the Door by James Kirby

Blurb

In this collection of short stories, a young girl lives with a violent father, who needs to be taught a lesson. Also, a soldier retreating to Dunkirk in 1940 is offered refuge by a young French girl. A haunted caravan, a spaniel in peril, a sick baby and a lonely old lady join the cast, with a sprinkling of the supernatural in each tale.

My review

Waiting at the Door by James Kirby is a collection of well-written short tales, each with a twist in the tale and realistic characters that come to life on the page. As well as the book’s title being metaphorical, with each story including a hint of the supernatural, it is also the name of one of my favourite stories in the collection, a heartbreaking tale of a young boy who has a close connection to his dog.

The characters are wide ranging: a schoolgirl growing up in 1929, a British soldier trapped in 1940 France, a boy on holiday in the Cotswolds, a young man who delivers a sense of poetic justice to protective his elderly mother, and many more.

Kirby has a unique narrative voice. Some stories are written in first person, others are in third person. There is a literary feel to the work with some stunning imagery, yet the language is also colloquial – which brings the working-class characters to life

I loved these twisty stories and look forward to reading more from this debut author. I recommend this book for fans of Daphne du Maurier, Laurie Lee, and Susan Hill.

About the author

James Kirby lives in Bristol with his wife and youngest son. They have four children and six grandchildren. James only started writing seriously while isolating during the Covid-19 pandemic. He holds an M.A. in creative writing with a high merit from the University of Hull. James is originally from Swindon. He grew up in a small, terraced house in the old town area. The youngest of a large family. His father was a postman and his mother always ensured that somebody was at home when the children returned from school with a meal waiting at the end of the day. His parents had seen hardship and tragedy during the Second World War. His mother as a nurse and his father as a soldier, serving with the Royal Artillery at Dunkerque. His father later taking part in raids across the English Channel with 4 Commando. James left Swindon at the age of eighteen to work as an apprentice at Rolls Royce in Filton, near Bristol. He still works in the water industry as an engineer.