Overview
In her introduction to The Man Back There, Mary Gaitskill writes simply, āI chose these stories because they made me feel. . . .ā The reader of David Crouseās collection is bound to agree, but the reasons are not easily explained. Crouse crawls inside the heads of a dozen male protagonists and tells us how they think. They are not always likeable. They are often losersātheir thoughts hurry ahead or dawdle behind, disconnected from what little action occurs around them.
And yet, somehow, we wince for the dog-catcher who crashes his ex-wifeās Thanksgiving dinner in āThe Castle on the Hill.ā We sympathize with the latch-key kid who pillages toys in a dead boyās closet in āTime Capsule.ā And in āThe Long Run,ā we find it hard to condemn a ninety-two-year-old senator trying to salvage his career after his ex-wife publishes a scandalous tell-all book about his life.
In this deceptively quiet collection, the truth is something that simmers up through what is not said. A hero is a man who saves himself from himself, who placates his temper with self-awareness and, most importantly, self-forgiveness. The Man Back There is a feat of empathy and razor sharp vision.
David Crouse is the author of Copy Cats, which received the 2005 Flannery OāConnor Award for Short Fiction. He lives in Fairbanks, where he teaches at the University of Alaska.
This book title, The Man Back There (Stories), ISBN: 9781932511635, by David Crouse, published by Sarabande Books (August 1, 2008) is available in paperback. Our minimum order quantity is 25 copies. All standard bulk book orders ship FREE in the continental USA and delivered in 4-10 business days.
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