Things We Do When No One Is Watching: Stories, Paperback

Descriere

One Gerard character says that ``childhood is a dangerous country, and not all of us make it out alive``--a powerful theme that runsthrough these beautifully crafted, moving stories. Those who domake it out alive are left trying to make sense of the memories, those defining times when one stands at the cusp of childhoodcomfort and the reality of violence and death and sheer badluck. Likewise there are moments when wishes come true andone glimpses something pure and good. These characters movethrough the flicker of light and dark as they grasp and shape theirlife stories with sharp detail and a poignant longing.--Jill Mc Corkle, Life After Life, The Cheerleader These beautifully constructed, visionary stories left me enthralledevening after evening. The book is so close to its events and Gerard is so skilled at turning these events into meaning that thereader is reminded again and again that literature is the greatcompanion and interpreter of life. This collection--intelligentand big-hearted--is a gift from a master storyteller to readers.--Rebecca Lee, The City Is a Rising Tide, Bobcat Philip Gerard is a magnificent storyteller, and in this moving andpoignant collection, he manages to achieve a kind of nostalgiathat is alternately realistic and dreamy and, when least expected, swiftly punctured with brutality.--Julianna Baggott, Burn, Pure