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George G. Buttigieg: Cigar Smoke. 2013, Malta. 370 pp.
A compulsive writer who is constantly dreaming his plots and characters, George G. Buttigieg has just published a collection of short stories titled Cigar Smoke. He is an accomplished and leading obstetrician and gynaecologist, but his writing goes back to his early university days when he profusely wrote radio plays and won competitions.
I simply love short stories. I am intrigued by how densely one can pack a few pages. Some try to pack details, but I do not quite favour this. Others try to pack sensations and expectations, leading to an unexpected finale. I love this and I found it in all of this author’s short stories. In fact I was tempted to title this article ‘But’, because after the story takes its course we find out that we are led one way and suddenly faced with a surprising ending.
In The Devil Drinks Single Malt we are engaged in a surreal world. But, like Salvador Dali, the author’s surrealism is also three-dimensional. We experience a meeting and a discussion with the evil one.
A Caprice Called Anadinku introduces us to the extravagant Jonathan Blaise and his companion James Antonetti, a true revelry organiser. They both go the Borneo to see the Anadinku tribe. But it’s a great mistake, as the tribe has curious taboos. Jonathan touches a dog and a death sentence is delivered, but … suddenly the story takes a turn which intrigues the reader.
Ambassador to Bonga Bonga Island speaks of Professor Bulyun, ambassador of Malasel to Bonga Bonga Island. The ambassadorship is indeed a very successful stint and Bulyun becomes a much-celebrated and revered figure. He even advises the prime minister of the island where to find oil, and the latter in turn promises a very generous return from oil revenues. But … then comes the twist, which I shall not reveal.
In Lilibeth, a six-year-old girl visits the home of an elderly couple and becomes their constant friend. Suddenly she stops her visits and so the elderly couple call at this girl’s house only to … well, find another ‘but’.
Dear Mother is a letter written by a soldier minutes before engaging in a battle. Hellish noise, weeping, shell-shocked people drown the feelings of this suffering soldier who writes: “Would be happier dead. Dear God in heaven, can hell be worse than this?” The story does not drag on much longer and we soon encounter the ‘but’.
Another short, thoroughly-amusing story is The Missing Piece, which is about Graham Butterworth, who has inherited this most fabulous grand collection from his father and establishes himself as full-time curator. He finds out there is one missing piece in this unique collection of lead soldiers and tries his damnedest to trace it. He does find it and is within reach, but ...
There are over 20 short stories, all most enjoyable. I leave it to you to delve into this rich collection. Interspersed we read a fine collection of poems. I confess there are some which I much prefer to the others.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, which is a great companion to travel cheaply in faraway places, peep at unlived lives, listen to unsung songs in a true imaginary world, and when you think you have reached a conclusion… you meet a ‘but’.