Craig Davidson – författare

In steel-tipped prose, Craig Davidson conjures a savage world populated by fighting dogs, prizefighters, sex addicts, and gamblers. In his title story, Davidson introduces an afflicted boxer whose hand never properly heals after a bone is broken. The fighter's career descends to bouts that have less to do with sport than with survival: no referee, no rules, not even gloves. In "A Mean Utility" we enter an even more desperate arena: dogfights where Rottweilers, pit bulls, and Dobermans fight each other to the death.Davidson's stories are small monuments to the telling detail. The hostility of his fictional universe is tempered by the humanity he invests in his characters and by his subtle and very moving observations of their motivations. He shares with Chuck Palahniuk the uncanny ability to compel our attention, time and time again, to the most difficult subject matter.

Set in the Niagara Falls of Craig Davidson’s imagination—known as "Cataract City"—the superb stories of Cascade shine a shimmering light on this slightly seedy, slightly magical, slightly haunted place. The six gems in this collection each illuminate familial relationships in a singular way: A mother and her infant son fight to survive a car crash in a remote wintry landscape outside of town. Fraternal twins at a juvenile detention center reach a dangerous crisis point in their entwined lives. A pregnant social worker grapples with the prospect of parenthood as a custody case takes a dire turn. A hardboiled ex-firefighter goes after a serial arsonist with a flair for the theatrical even as his own troubled sister is drawn toward the flames. These are just some of the unforgettable characters animating this stellar collection that crackles with Davidson’s superb craft and kinetic energy: in the steel-tipped prose, in the psychological perspicacity, and in the endearing humor.

When a pair of fighters step into an illegal ring, sometimes only one walks out.This is the story of two men from radically different backgrounds, but with one thing in common. For Rob, it’s a question of talent and duty. For Paul, it’s one of fear.In the bloody world of bare-knuckle boxing the stakes are mercilessly high. Testing the difficult relationships between fathers and their sons, The Fighter explores the lengths to which these men are driven for self-knowledge, and the depths they will plumb in order to belong.

In steel-tipped prose, Rust and Bone conjures up a world of hard-scrabble pugilists, fighting dogs, sex addicts and others held captive by their own bad luck and bad decisions. This is a debut collection that pulls no punches: characterized by bold insights and raw power, each story illuminates the darkness with moments of surprising redemption to build a humane and wholly gripping account of what it means to be on the margins.