Elevator Music. . . And Other Odd Tales

Mystery, satire, and character studies comprise this collection of 21 short stories. These are quirky, yet realistic stories of emotional misfits in American society enmeshed in unusual situations and conflicts. From the title story about a divorced loser meeting up with his ex-wife and becoming an unlikely hero in a tragic pas de deux, to a son being robbed of an innocent belief in his father in "The Robbery," and the one fairy tale "Osama's Violin" about how the world's most wanted man was once an almost angelic man and gradually became a devil incarnate, these narratives offer a unique slant on the pains and joys of living. These are not the well-worn, traditional "familial narratives" common in most story collections, but distinctive forays into the unusual, sometimes bizarre, manifestations of human behavior.