Comments and reviews of Country People: Stories from Rural New York appeared in publications and on Amazon.
"Laura," the lead story of the collection, was Originally published in Four Quarters, 23.4 (Summer 1974) by the Department of English at La Salle University, Philadelphia, PA 19141-1199. Four Quarters Editor John J. Keenan writes:
The voice of the narrator is beautifully established and adds a great deal to the complexity and the subtlety of the story.
The collection concludes with Dad’s Dump, originally published in the Albany Times Union’s Viewpoint, October 25, 2015. Jay Jochnowitz, editorial page editor, writes,
Every once in a while, in the middle of all the submissions I get on important issues of the day, comes a gem of a piece in which a writer tells a wonderful story that finds something universal in a personal experience. It’s a break for both me and for readers. Larry Schnell’s piece on finding his dad’s old beer can dump was one of those rare gems.
Country People: Stories from Rural New York is rated five-stars by Amazon readers Here are comments:.
Larry Schnell has discovered the South doesn't hold a lock on local characters worth a writer's efforts. His Upstate New York personalities are every bit as discoverable and a whole lot more authentic. He has captured the very essence of these people to make for a series of short story classics. It proved to be a delightful evening of discovery.
The stories are well written in a way that brings these characters to life. Their speech, dress, mannerisms and behavior nicely define their characters. Wonderful descriptions of small town settings and rural life are a backdrop to the plots and the mix of country people. These are good stories worth reading.
The author skillfully takes us to a remote and magical land nestled between the Catskills and the Adirondacks in Upstate New York. Each story unfolds gradually, the characters coming to life revealing idiosyncrasies of this curious, rural population. The reader is propelled through surprising and bazaar tales that leave thought provoking curiosity about the nature of humanity. So grab this collection and snuggle up by the wood stove. You will not regret the journey.
With a nod towards writers like Henry James and Edgar Allan Poe, Larry Schnell paints his gothic, socially analytic and sometimes humorous tales from a poetically descriptive and prolific palette. The book is an admirable celebration of the rural individual in the setting of small town life.
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