History and the Past

All 12 short stories collected in The History of Sound, explore the relationship between the past and the present. In each story, the characters’ surprising encounters with reminders of their own personal histories or their ancestors’ lives lead them on transformative self-discovery journeys. Throughout the collection, the past resurfaces in the present in the forms of phonograph cylinders, ceramic dildos, oil paintings, children, apple trees, logging cabins, photographs, stuffed birds, or Bibles. No matter the artifact the characters encounter, they all gain insight into themselves as a result of these historical reminders.

In “The History of Sound” and “Origin Stories,” the phonograph cylinders that Lionel and David create in 1919 grant both Lionel and Annie insight into their own loss and longing. In “The History of Sound,” hearing David’s voice on the cylinders decades after his death makes Lionel realize that the summer of...