Perfection in Bad Axe / stories by Craig Bernthal.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bernthal, Craig, 1952-

Language:

English

Genre:

Fiction.

Physical Description:

162 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Columbia : University of Missouri Press, [2003]

Summary:

Set mainly in the Midwest, these tales are inhabited by ordinary, decent people who, often to their surprise, find joy and meaning under difficult circumstances. Many of the stories depict isolated moments of perfection in a world that routinely forces its imperfections on us. A teenager wrestles with guilt over an accident he caused in "Perfection in Bad Axe." In "A Knight Pursued," a young prosecuting attorney confronts on the same day his first autopsy and his wife's unexpected desire to have a baby. A devout, hardworking business owner is drawn into a lawsuit that threatens his marriage and leads him to question his most deeply felt principles. "Center of Gravity" finds a middle-aged law professor overcome by his chaotic life and searching for a degree of peace. These are the finely developed characters of Bernthal's stories -- people we recognize, but who never seem overly familiar. Interesting, substantial, and utterly engrossing, each one could be just like any one of us, an ordinary Jane or Joe, trying to maintain or find order in a life sometimes filled with disorder.

Contents:

A small parenthesis in eternity

A knight pursued

Little Round Top

Route 18

Perfection in Bad Axe

The message board

Center of gravity

Gasers

The angel at the top of the stairs.

ISBN:

0826214819

OCLC:

52047412