"'Atta Boy" vaults us into a narrative in which time is as much the subject as the characters. In an almost Faulknerian way, Carson finds the pulse of ambition and uses that tick to reveal the inner voices that can haunt us all, if allowed. We should be looking to the eternities, of course, but in the meantime, we have so many other things to worry us onward into the night, or at least the next priesthood interview. This story excels at showing the ironies of those worries as opposed the unvarnished truths about ourselves. The Association for Mormon Letters is proud to present Kristen Carson with the 2006 Award for Short Fiction.

© 2007 The Association for Mormon Letters