All the Way to Memphis

Suzanne Hudson's "All the Way to Memphis" is more than a collection of short stories; it is a trip. This collection's strength lies in its trajectory. It trespasses through the southern gothic but does not stall there. It continues on to create a map that transcends the confines of abusive family members and social hierarchies that have long stereotyped the South to arrive at a place familiar to all: the human heart.
Hudson drives the heart's terrain like a trucker. Shoe possesses such skill that hope in each story is constantly lurking about, an unwritten character waiting to spring eternal. The language she employs to do her bidding becomes an accent that sits uncomfortably on the tongue, familiar but jarring. Young girl. Hitch hiker. Murderer, Librarian. And more. The voices combine., their levels rising in response to the noise within, and without.