fiction and creative non-fiction from Brennan Quenneville
That I cannot speak does not mean that I am silent. The pumping heartbeat, the hissing intake of breath, the endless creaking of bones – I do not need a voice to be heard. When I sat, waiting patiently in the blind in the high tree, I did not wait to hear men’s voices – [...]
I'm only telling you this because I have to. They say that telling it helps, that dragging the words out from my insides and into the world will give me some clarity. Or maybe it was lucidity. Or maybe it was both. I don’t remember. But even if I don’t believe them, I suppose I’m [...]
Beneath the midday sun, the smell of sweat and dust filled the air and reminded Aulus of all that he had to lose – his family and his home, tucked neatly into their own small corner of the Seven Hills. He thought of round Caecina and their seven children. This was no place for Caecina. [...]
…and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Acts 2:17 ----- “‘Hace mucho tiempo, cuando sueños aún tenía capacidad...’ I remember the words clearly now, but I still don’t know what they mean.” “Why didn’t you ask Eduardo to translate them [...]
It's strange. I wasn't sure that I believed it when I first truly contemplated it in an English class in college. But now I'm sure it's true. Try as they might, firm as their grasp may seem, no author, no creator, can completely control the content of their work. There was a time when I [...]
She has always been a strong woman, my mother. She had buried two of her sons before any of this even began; she held me when I wept for their deaths. Dave and I are left. And here we are, supporting her as we can, doing what sons do. He takes her to swim lessons [...]
Sometimes nature is just too incredibly badass for its own good. Case in point: in an island environment that lacked large predatory mammals, the Evolver (As opposed to the Creator? No? Not a single laugh? Eh, you're right.) deemed that not nearly enough large-scale slaughter was taking place. And then it remedied the problem right [...]
My peers and I are in a conspicuous position when it comes to reviewing the past decade in music: we began high school and likely completed college all within the confines of the decade. High school and college. Those are your prime musical-attachment years. Regardless of whether or not you are capable of keeping an [...]
2009 was a solid (if unspectacular) year for music, marked by two masterful (if not transcendent) albums and a whole slew of decent-to-good records. For some reason unbeknownst to me, nearly every band that released an album in 2009 released some variety of pop-album, even bands that had never before ventured into those sugary waters [...]
Just a few short weeks ago, Third Eye Blind released their long-awaited fourth full-length album, Ursa Major. I was hoping to avoid reviewing this album until sometime around December or January, when I'll be posting my Top 10 Albums of 2009 article, but it seems that my hand has been forced. Frankly, I highly doubt [...]
Songs & Stories 