A collection of five prose pieces, these are less stories and more character studies. Among the five works are in-depth and sometimes hard to read portraits of drug addiction, alcoholism, and relationships. Driven entirely by character and not plot, these are keenly observed studies of human nature. The writing is fluid, the spotlight on the characters absolutely merciless, and while not heart-warming they keep you reading to the last word. Because the characters are so well drawn, the fact that they don’t all get a happy endings, or even an ending, has a strong affect on the reader. These are definitely not happy stories; about the best they get is bittersweet, and overall the book left me with a hollow, slightly sad, feeling.

When it comes down to it, what none of these characters have is hope, and that is perhaps what makes the stories here so effective. The path that they will take, the course of events, is obvious to the reader, and yet the stories make you understand them and carry you along with their decisions every step of the way. For older readers, many of the stories may well resonate with past experience.

A wonderful example of literary fiction, for readers who enjoy character studies and know that life doesn’t have plots and happy endings.