Collected Stories

Abstract

This collection includes five short stories and the opening chapter of a novella and while the topics and narrative techniques vary widely, certain themes emerge throughout the collection. In each story, the protagonist is faced with an unexpected event that forces some kind of action - an abusive husband whose behavior is passed on to his son, a latent pedophile, a man learning of his ancestors' sins, a successful attorney dealing with his parents' infirmities, a man confronting his sister's mental illness, and a man facing his mother's death. All of these characters face these realities n different ways, but cannot avoid dealing with what twists and turns the world has waiting for them. In this collection, the various characters respond to the environment that they find themselves in and do their best to remain intact in environments that are sometimes hostile and occasionally toxic.