The Philosopher Stories by Jerry Levy.
The philosopher stories chronicles the life of Karl Pringle, a failed philosopher who lives in a decrepit apartment in Toronto’s bohemian Kensington Market, is unemployed and very much rootless. The stories follow Karl as he moves from one strange episode to the next, none of which end well. He steals someone else’s prose that he passes off as his own, holds a book sale to buy stolen computers, lives in a cave for a time, gets into fights, and continually schemes to source money. Funny and yet achingly sad, these stories depict a young man grappling with life’s big questions: love, success, loss, death, rejection, and fate.
These engaging stories showcase a smart, idiosyncratic and often humorous prose.
But it’s Levy’s flair for the unexpected that will leave the reader begging
for more. —Guglielmo D’Izzia, author of The Transaction.
Levy’s stories present a searing look at the darker side of Toronto life rarely
depicted in fiction. —Sharon Hart-Green, author of Come Back for Me.
Author Bio
In addition to having published his short stories in literary magazines and
anthologies throughout Canada, the U.S., and the UK, Jerry Levy has had three collections of short stories published with CDN literary publishers: Urban Legend (2013, Thistledown Press), The Quantum Theory of Love and Madness (2020, Guernica Editions), The Philosopher Stories (Guernica Editions, 2024). He has served as a judge for The Writer's Union of Canada's annual short fiction contest and is a regular contributor of book reviews to The Ottawa Review of Books. Starting 2024, he will be teaching a course in Writing the Short Story at The Life Institute, affiliated with Metropolitan University in Toronto. He possesses a B. Comm. degree (Concordia
University, Montreal) and a TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language)certificate (CCLCS, Toronto). His website: jerrylevy.weebly.com
The philosopher stories chronicles the life of Karl Pringle, a failed philosopher who lives in a decrepit apartment in Toronto’s bohemian Kensington Market, is unemployed and very much rootless. The stories follow Karl as he moves from one strange episode to the next, none of which end well. He steals someone else’s prose that he passes off as his own, holds a book sale to buy stolen computers, lives in a cave for a time, gets into fights, and continually schemes to source money. Funny and yet achingly sad, these stories depict a young man grappling with life’s big questions: love, success, loss, death, rejection, and fate.
These engaging stories showcase a smart, idiosyncratic and often humorous prose.
But it’s Levy’s flair for the unexpected that will leave the reader begging
for more. —Guglielmo D’Izzia, author of The Transaction.
Levy’s stories present a searing look at the darker side of Toronto life rarely
depicted in fiction. —Sharon Hart-Green, author of Come Back for Me.
Author Bio
In addition to having published his short stories in literary magazines and
anthologies throughout Canada, the U.S., and the UK, Jerry Levy has had three collections of short stories published with CDN literary publishers: Urban Legend (2013, Thistledown Press), The Quantum Theory of Love and Madness (2020, Guernica Editions), The Philosopher Stories (Guernica Editions, 2024). He has served as a judge for The Writer's Union of Canada's annual short fiction contest and is a regular contributor of book reviews to The Ottawa Review of Books. Starting 2024, he will be teaching a course in Writing the Short Story at The Life Institute, affiliated with Metropolitan University in Toronto. He possesses a B. Comm. degree (Concordia
University, Montreal) and a TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language)certificate (CCLCS, Toronto). His website: jerrylevy.weebly.com