Short stories

Book SynopsisWhite brings with it dreams of respect, of wealth, of simply being treated as a human being. It's the one thing Walter will never be. But what if he could play white, the way so many others seem to do? Would it bring him privilege or simply deny the pain? The title story in this collection asks those questions, and then moves on to challenge notions of race, privilege, personal choice, and even life and death with equal vigor. From the spectrum spanning despair and hope in "What She Saw When They Flew Away" to the stark weave of personal struggles in "Chocolate Park," Let's Play White speaks with the voices of the overlooked and unheard. "I Make People Do Bad Things" shines a metaphysical light on Harlem's most notorious historical madame, and then, with a deft twist into melancholic humor, "Cue: Change" brings a zombie-esque apocalypse, possibly for the betterment of all mankind. Gritty and sublime, the stories of Let's Play White feature real people facing the worlds they're given, bringing out the best and the worst of what it means to be human. If you're ready to slip into someone else's skin for a while, then it's time to come play white. Blurbs: "These raw, brutal stories, often with intriguingly open endings, display an odd and unsettling relationships to the poetry of violence. These dark tales announce the arrival of a formidable new master of the macabre." -Samuel R. Delany, author of Dhalgren and Through the Valley of the Nest of Spiders "What a stunning collection. Let's Play White...and so on time. [Chesya Burke has] touched something special in [her] stories. I'm a big Octavia Butler fan and I see a peek of that as well as some latter-day Toni Morrison [within these pages]. I see the light and warmth [Chesya is] offering. There definitely is magic in that. The short story, next to poetry, is the most difficult writing form. [Chesya has] tamed it and made it yield to [her] touch." -Nikki Giovanni, Grammy-nominated spoken word artist and poet Cover Artist: Jordan Casteel About the Author: Chesya Burke has published over forty short stories in various venues including Dark Dreams: Horror and Suspense by Black Writers, Voices From the Other Side, and Whispers in the Night, each published by Kensington Publishing Corp. as well as the historical, science, and speculative fiction magazine, Would That It Were, and many more. Several of her articles appeared in the African American National Biography, published by Harvard and Oxford University Press, and she won the 2004 Twilight Tales award for short fiction. Chesya attends Agnes Scott College, where she studies creative writing and the African diaspora as it relates to race, class and gender. Many of these themes find themselves appearing in her fiction.

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Book SynopsisThe lives of the working class in West Virginia—a train engineer, an epileptic, coal miners and outlaws, the fragile and dispossessed—are explored in this powerful yet tender collection of six short stories and a novella. They depict an isolated world of hardship, human endurance, and hard-won dignity and are a lyrical rendering of times and places now largely gone—but the stirring clarity of people and landscape can persist in the reader's imagination.Trade Review"If good writing alone were enough to propel fiction, this book would fly off into the stratosphere. . . . An elegantly poetic tribute to the sort of strength of character and dominance of subject that Hemingway, Wolfe, or even Proust would grudgingly admire. Here are six stories and a novella with grit, guts and that old-time sense of word-sparing, stark, locomotive-driven prose-poetry that will set to thumping the heart of any lover of the English language." --Winston Groom, Los Angeles Times"A beautiful book. One is tempted to describe the prose in The Wars of Heaven as 'spare' or 'austere' because of its economy, but these words belie the richness of the narratives. Currey is a colorful and poetic writer, a painter of startling yet flowing images. Both his tragic and comic figures are created with a compassionate hand that is all too rare in today's fiction. . . . It is not hyperbole to call him a lasting contribution to American literature." --John Sutherland, Seattle Times"Exquisite images of American life . . . set in the early years of the last century, these six stories and a novella have the authenticity and pathos of vintage photographs, with characters limned with compassion and sensitivity. Currey's is an eloquent voice." -- Publishers Weekly"Powerfully written and flavored with the 'worn smell of work and old oil and coal dust.'" -- Library Journal"Richard Currey has staked out the dream side of reality, territory well-known to the mad and the desperate of whom he writes so respectfully. The novella that caps this collection, 'The Love of a Good Woman,' is a seamless delight." --New York Times Book Review"Currey combines a highly precise prose style with stories filled with compelling characters and forward-moving narratives. . . . I' giving this a perfect 10." Karl Wolff, cclapcenter.com

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Book SynopsisThe stories in Muscle Cars explore the unique and sometimes flawed relationships between men, their families, and their friends. Featuring a diverse cast of inarticulate misfits-including a compulsive body builder obsessed by the death of his brother, a former boxer forced to sell his prized 1946 New York Yankees--autographed baseball, and two boyhood friends who plan to steal Ted Williams' scientifically frozen head-this stand-out debut from Pushcart-nominated Eoannou is a powerful journey through the humor, darkness, and neuroses of the modern American everyman.Trade Review"The stories in Stephen G. Eoannou's collection are, as the title suggests, very much like muscle carslean, powerful, fast, and gorgeous. Eoannou evokes, in 17 richly textured and often hilarious visions of Buffalo life, what it means to be maleson, brother, father, spouse, lover, half-baked friend, sports fanatic, neighborin the 21st century. These stories will transport you. Enjoy the ride." K. L. Cook, author, Love Songs for the Quarantined and Last Call"Part Richard Russo, part Bruce Springsteen, part OTB parlors and Cutlass Supremes, Steve Eoannou's debut collection, Muscle Cars , is allallheart. These are tough, ruminative, cunning and toughdid I say tough?stories of people trying to make it, one way and another, for better and worse. A fine first collection, and I look forward to the next." Brett Lott, author, Jewel"In his collection, Stephen G. Eoannou proves masterful at revealing that razor's edge inside everyday American man, where the power of role and the power of raw emotion almost balance out. He throws light on the mysterious interiors of husbands, fathers, sons, brothers, soldiers, compatriots, these streets of Buffalo past and present--all the while keeping track of the darker currents that run beneath the surface. And no matter how sympathetic, how human his storytellers are, there always seems to come a moment when you have to decide if this guy--the one with the plot to steal a frozen head or auction a baseball or shave his weightlifter legs--is brilliant or insane. Muscle Cars is a magnificent debut." Ashley Warlick, author, Seek the Living and The Summer After June"With its lean, elegant prose and intense sense of place, Stephen G. Eoannou's Muscle Cars is more than a collection of beautifully-written stories; it's a deep dive into the psyche of the American male." Mike Burrell, Mike Burrell Author Blog

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Book Synopsis"A bold, riveting mash-up of Hitchcockian suspense and campfire-tale chills." —Jennifer Egan, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, A Visit From the Goon SquadLegacies of violence and tragedy haunt these thirteen stunning stories from Tara Laskowski, author of Modern Manners for Your Inner Demons and One Night Gone. A woman who becomes obsessed with her co-worker's murderer; an investigative reporter with a nose for scandal finds his own life suddenly unraveling; eerie sights in a video baby monitor haunt a new mother. When the unexpected happens, these bystanders—who are not always innocent—come face to face with their own choices and fates.Bound together by danger, fear, paranoia, and the bumps we all hear in the night, these potent stories illuminate the darker side of the human condition. From a vicious newspaper strike that rocks a small Pennsylvania community to an unpredictable road trip in the vast desert of the American West, Bystanders explores the ways in which terror and uncertainty both consumes and invigorate us—and yet reveal our strengths, hopes, and passions. Trade Review"There's still plenty left," one of the characters in The Witness says, referencing a cake, but the reader has been taken deep enough into the story to know that there's no way that can be true, because there's not enough of anything left for the main character. And in one story after another in this excellent collection, characters are tested when their expectations are strained and even shattered, not by the extraordinary, but more devastatingly, by the ordinary. Tara Laskowski's collection will be welcomed by readers who care about witnessing the significant rather than the spectacular." Gary Fincke, author and winner of the Flannery O'Connor Prize for Sorry I Worried You"Tara Laskowski's stories are deceptively cozy: soft suburban street lights out front, but a too-deep swimming pool out back. With a deft touch, she ravels and unravels her characters' lives so seamlessly; they never know what's coming until they're in too deep, and what's scarier, the reader doesn't, either." Jen Michalski, author, The Tide King and The Summer She Was Under Water"In this debut that resonates, Tara Laskowski's women and men drift through an imperfect suburbia, much like the disembodied souls who haunt her characters day and night. Laskowski has a natural ability to pen the banal, juxtaposed with the horror that often lurks just outside the light that spills from our windows. She digs into the crevices and corners of everyday lives to find the grit, the dirt, the ghostsour deepest secretsthen finds a way to turn it all into crystal clear story moments that will enlighten her readers." Tara L. Masih, series editor, The Best Small Fictions"Tara Laskowski's stories show off a wonderful fusion of freshness and experience." Alan Cheuse, NPR reviewer, All Things Considered"There's still plenty left," one of the characters in The Witness says, referencing a cake, but the reader has been taken deep enough into the story to know that there's no way that can be true, because there's not enough of anything left for the main character. And in one story after another in this excellent collection, characters are tested when their expectations are strained and even shattered, not by the extraordinary, but more devastatingly, by the ordinary. Tara Laskowski's collection will be welcomed by readers who care about witnessing the significant rather than the spectacular." Gary Fincke, author and winner of the Flannery O'Connor Prize for Sorry I Worried You

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Book SynopsisThe fourteen fantastical stories in Magic For Unlucky Girls take the familiar tropes of fairytales and twist them into new and surprising shapes. These unlucky girls, struggling against a society that all too often oppresses them, are forced to navigate strange worlds as they try to survive. From carnivorous husbands to a bath of lemons to whirling basements that drive people mad, these stories are about the demons that lurk in the corners and the women who refuse to submit to them, instead fighting back—sometimes with their wit, sometimes with their beauty, and sometimes with shotguns in the dead of night.Trade Review"[ Magic for Unlucky Girls ] is that rarest of things: A book that doesn't remind me of anything else I've read ... A wonderful, truly original work." -- Emily St. John Mandel, author, Station Eleven" Magic For Unlucky Girls is a bold debut from a bold author, and make no mistake -- these are stories that matter, and that will stick with you long after you've read them." -- William Jablonsky, author, The Indestructible Man: Stories and The Clockwork Man"You'll find familiar fairytale tropes here, but Balaskovits shatters these familiar mirrors and finds fresh, original stories in the sinister shards." -- Tara Laskowski, author, Bystanders and Modern Manners for Your Inner Demons"Readers looking for something askew from any fantasy they've read before will want to get to know the unlucky but determined girls of Balaskovits's stories." -- Publishers Weekly"The stories in Magic for Unlucky Girls combine the magical with contemporary realism, rendering an aesthetic I've not quite seen but couldn't get enough of. Balaskovits has an in-depth eye for detail, creates her own folklores, and possesses a dry wit that adds a welcome attitude to her fables." -- Michael Czyzniejewski, story366blog.wordpress.com"Balaskovits's anthology breathes fresh life into classic fairy tales. Readers who enjoy short fiction with a fantastical bent should pick up this award-winning book." -- Library Journal"Balaskovits' stories are spectacularly entertaining and artfully executed." -- Ashley Miller, Atticus Review"Balaskovits creates her own mythology that transcends time and upends traditional ideas about helpless damsels and men-as-beasts." -- Jen Michalski, washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com

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Book SynopsisUnflinching portrayals of desire and alienation fill Bonnie Chau's award-winning story collection. Chau's short fiction explores the lives of young women navigating love, failure, heritage, and memory, and presents a fresh perspective of second-generation Chinese-Americans. Moving back and forth between California and New York, and ranging as far away as Paris, Chau’s exquisitely written stories are bold, highly imaginative, and haunting, featuring characters who defiantly exert their individuality.Trade Review"Chau's stories [are] a straight shot into the deepest recesses of my bodymasterful." Anelise Chen, author of So Many Olympic Exertions"Chau's voice is strong, the stories tense. Readers should snatch this collection up." Mat Johnson, author of Loving Day"The intensity and desire of youth, with the wisdom of wild imagination, fill these wonderful stories by Chau. This unforgettable, stellar debut kept surprising me with fantastical turns, and sharp, unsettling insights." Rivka Galchen, author of Atmospheric Disturbances"Chau is a writer of sharp intelligence who cannot help but to build lifemessy and raw and realon the page. A remarkable debut." Ben Marcus, author of Leaving the Sea"I loved these leaky, sexy, witty stories of displacement and translation, of dutiful daughters and secret selves changing shapes and fragmenting." Kate Zambreno, author of O Fallen Angel"Brilliant and strange, Chau's arresting short stories delve into the emotional and sexual lives of second-generation Chinese-American women... Chau is a distinctive voice." Kirkus"...an exhilarating debut...honest and arresting. All Roads Lead to Blood will ring true to anyone who feels like they're lingering on the path toward figuring themselves out." Arianna Rebolini, Buzzfeed" All Roads Lead to Blood is a strong offering that masterfully explores both the power and the pain of female sexuality." Jesi Buell, Heavy Feather Review

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Book SynopsisEightball strikes hard. Fueled by an abiding sense of loss, these eight stories take you on a journey over the exploded fault lines of intimacy, unfolding across cities and continents. Whether hitchhiking the Italian Veneto, trekking through a pitch-black Balinese rice field, or queuing for drinks in a crowded Seattle bar, Geoghegan sets her characters adrift in a world that stakes its claim to the enigmatic terrain of desire. This collection of darkly comic, occasionally violent, tales is anchored by the eponymous "eightball," a coming of age novella about a sister and brother guided by the inertia of recklessness and self-destruction. A protégé of the late Lucia Berlin, Elizabeth Geoghegan writes lyric, place-driven prose laced with edgy realism and wry wit.Trade Review"A masterful collection laced with dark humor, aching grief and great tenderness. Geoghegan's stories take us around the world, from a beach house on the Atlantic all the way to Bali and Rome and the quiet power of her voice reaches both heart and bone." Francesca Marciano, author of The Other Language , (stories) and novels Rules of The Wild , The End of Manners , and Casa Rossa ." Eightball 's magical thinking leaves me wonderstruck. If Lucia Berlin is early Patti Smith, then Elizabeth Geoghegan is Blondie and Joan Jett and Florence and the Machine in one big literary sandwich." Susan Bradley Smith, author of the verse novels The Postcult Heart, The Screaming Middle, and Beds For All Who Come"Geoghegan's eloquently told stories examine themes of loneliness, sex, addiction, and grief through the lens of unfamiliar cultures and languages. The thread that holds it all together is Geoghegan's cool, articulate demeanor and masterful writing." Kirkus"Let Elizabeth Geoghegan's provocative, poetic prose be your guide through eightball , her collection of eight short stories that emphasize the different features that love, intimacy, desire, and lust can bring out in a person." Bailey Drumm, Atticus Review"A baby dropped into a river, a pair of brothers grappling with addiction, and a young woman finds herself infatuated by a young man we only know as Tree boy. These are three of the tales Elizabeth Geoghegan spins in her new collection Eightball out from the Santé Fe Writer's project. The stories also take place across the globe, including Rome, Paris, Thailand, and Seattle. Geoghegan's true gift is that she seems to truly understand human nature, even when it breaks our hearts, and it is so satisfying. These carefully written short stories often bend and twist in the most unexpected ways." Gretchen Lida, Book Riot

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