'These assured, accomplished stories are reports from a world in which unacknowledged dark energies undermine and render hollow our bright, rational self-understanding. With passion and intelligence, and rare moral insight, Elleke Boehmer traces the scars left on the psyche by the tortuous histories of the South.' – J.M. Coetzee
'To the Volcano does not eschew tough topics such as trauma, colonialism, illegal migration, ageing and loss, but Boehmer’s exquisite, considered prose elucidates them with a tenderness I found deeply touching. The short story will always hold a special place in my heart. This year, To the Volcano and Other Stories spoke to me particularly as it explores the tenuous and tenacious relationships people have with the South.' – Best Books of 2020, Karina Szczurek for The Sunday Times
'Every story is unique, easy to read and the characters were vivid enough to be memorable after only a few short pages.' – Books and Cleverness, bookstagrammerRead full review
'[Elleke] insightfully explores past traumas, disappointments, dreams, ambitions and self-knowledge. The language is richly evocative and loaded with sensory information, in particularly vivid, striking colours. Some of these stories were very cinematic and I’d love to have read on beyond their final pages.' – Silver Linings and Pages, Bookstagrammer 4/5 star review
'Compassionate, intelligent and evocative: this is morally serious writing, lucidly rendered.' – Gail Jones
'Arresting, intriguing, luminous and seductive are some of the adjectives used on the cover of Boehmer’s anthology of tales. Her stories describe people who are utterly real, raw and flawed. Both every day and yet so very washed in undercurrent, these stories are haunting and compelling.' – Nancy Richards, Country Life
'I feel cheated that I was not knowledgeable about this talented, moral writer earlier in my reading career and delighted for the introduction now. Her word choices are sublime, exacting. I have now read this book three times, and I am putting it on my shelf of those books I draw out in the middle of the night when I cannot sleep and simply must read.' – Recommended Reading, Patricia's Wisdom
'These are insightful, intelligent stories full of characters pursuing their dreams but often meeting with disappointment, unable to make a decisive move, pulled back by a longing for home or an inability to escape their past and often left lonely as a result. An enjoyable collection, written with a quietly perceptive insight.' – A Life in Books
'Arresting, intriguing, and brilliantly crafted, these stories explore the psychic wounds of our rapidly contracting contemporary world, with its complications of race, migration and trauma. Each unfolds with impeccable pacing, and gradually unveils a deeply humane sense of the world.' – Kwame Dawes