Mary Costello proves herself as James Joyce’s heir in intense story collection

The writer who has long been an admirer of James Joyce turns a keen eye to the human condition in new short story collection Barcelona, which also derives inspiration from the lives of Kafka, Einstein and Robert Musil, among others

Forensic eye: Mary Costello. Photo: Yamila

Martina Devlin

The notion that “not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts” is an intriguing one. It’s particularly apt for the short story format — reliant on what’s implied rather than said to convey an essential truth.

Short fiction is the forte of the award-winning writer Mary Costello, a strong contender as the finest modern practitioner of the Joycean short story, with its trademark epiphany. Love and loathing jostle in Barcelona, her latest collection, characterised by haunting stories brimming with quiet desperation, intense yearning and moments of transcendence.