Nudes by Elle Nash

Elle Nash’s debut novella Animals Eat Each Other announced the arrival of an exciting new talent, one who was not afraid to examine the darker corners of human existence, and the way we treat each other. It also showed a writer who didn’t waste a word, so her new short story collection Nudes is a welcome publication as it seems the perfect form for Nash’s fiction.

That proves to be the case as the stories in Nudes are not only short, but sharp and often shocking. Nash’s characters are beautifully imagined, jumping off the page, and are people who rarely appear in print – working class women striving to survive in a harsh and unforgiving world. The collection works as a whole as the stories seem to bleed into each other, strongly suggesting a shared world. This is in no small part down to Nash’s references, which are spot on. The drinks drunk, the cigarettes smoked, as well as the music listened to and the clothes worn, place events either in the 90s or 00s, or they at least make you reflect on them. It’s not a trip into nostalgia, just a fully imagined world in terms of people and place.

You should make yourself familiar with Elle Nash, and Nudes is the perfect introduction. This is a writer who is only getting started, and promises even greater things to come.

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404 Ink, 21 Jul