This anthology explores the unpredictable paths
of curious characters fi nding their way through life.
In the fi rst story, an internationally renowned pianist
is approached by a wealthy, New York dilettante
who convinces her that her musical interpretations
would be strengthened if she spent some time living
primitively. In The Deputy Sheriff’s Rise to Fame,
a mathematician who teaches in Paris tries to locate
her twin brother in West Texas. She fi nds him in a
bar that houses a seven-foot rattlesnake.
Pedro’s Puppets follows the adventures of a
Mexican bus driver who fi nds refuge from hitmen
by putting on puppet shows. Greg and April takes
place in Big Bend National Park and on a West Texas
ranch. A hippie and a nine-year-old girl fl ee when the
girl’s mother is injured.
In Larry’s Cave, a high school student digs a
cave in his backyard and acts out his family situation
by casting shadows on the wall of the cave.
Last Leaves of Autumn is a touching story about
a boy, his mother, and a Swedish girl who comes to
live with them. Marvin and Hubert portrays how
a man with a “Dionysian” character betrays his
twin brother, who has a contrasting “Apollonian”
personality.
Knives and Friends focuses on the interactions
between a podiatrist who is obsessed with the big
toe, and an unemployed physicist who artifi cially
inseminates horses for a living.
In Ariela, a lady in her twenties has life changing
experiences in Mexico, New York City, and while
sailing in the Gulf of Mexico. The Wanderings of a
Young Artist examines the values of a scientist turned
artist, and in Laughter in the Retirement Home, a
visitor tells a joke and transforms the lives of the
residents.