The first title in the Biblioasis Studies in Short Fiction series, W. J. Keith’s God’s Plenty is the first book to explore the eccentric range of that master of stylistic felicity, Hugh Hood. He was primarily interested in exploring the numerous kinds of story that appealed to him, in experimenting with form, style, and nuance to find the way of telling a particular story most effectively. His ideal reader is one prepared to be flexible, open to fresh approaches, and above all sensitive to the sounds and rhythms as well as the precise meanings of his carefully chosen words. Though a master stylist, Hugh Hood, unlike most other Canadian stylists, was not averse to writing a story that has something to say, and Keith’s study looks at the strong convictions and Catholic allegorizing perspective which playfully informed so much of his work.

Above all, Keith’s work, as is this series, is a call to remember the work of one of the most important short story writers in Canadian history, to look at his work anew.

W. J. Keith was born and raised in England. He came to Canada in 1958 where he taught at McMaster (1961-66), then at the University of Toronto (1966-95). Since 1995 he has held the position of Professor Emeritus of English at University College, University of Toronto.

W. J. Keith edited the University of Toronto Quarterly (1976-85), and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1979.

An updated version of Canadian Literature in English was published in 2006.

W.J. Keith's profile page

My work demands to be read silently and with close attention by mature men and women . . . And a single reading won't do. --Hugh Hood

"Hood's stories are easy to read but sometimes difficult to understand." --Kent Thompson