A very odd story set in a dark future, where humans barely survive underground living horrific lives of disease and despair. On the good side, we have a solid exchanges of dialogue with interesting characters including separated young lovers, a journalist, and a child thief. The overall setting i...
Little Chicago opens in the office of Children’s Services, where 11-year-old Blacky Brown is being interviewed by a social worker trying to determine what has happened to him. His emotions are blocked at first, but then he reveals that he has been sexually abused by his mother’s boyfriend, and is...
I’d been promising Custis that I’d teach him because he’d get so jealous every time he saw me and Old Man Turpentine dancing in back of the Fun Shop. He’d shuffle up to me all low and sideways with those desperate eyes, going, “C’mon, Curl, teach me to dance, you know you promised.” So there we w...
I know your mother isn’t too keen on you eating sweets, but I took the liberty of adding a few things I thought you might enjoy. The brownies are homemade, my own special recipe in fact. And I know your birthday isn’t until mid-March, but I thought I would include a little money to keep in your p...
Although an old municipal plow has scraped down the street exactly twice—the driver’s head enshrouded in wool—clearly it’s been an effort in futility as the snow continues to fall at a dizzying rate.I’m in the attic. I’ve been spending the last few hours counting the number of people laboring dow...
Dirty Diana was watching it when I walked in. She was bleaching her feet and eating a big bag of Tostitos. You see this? she said. Poor little girl. According to the news, the Frog’s real name is Laurel May Gillett. This anchorwoman said she’s three-and-a-half and that she’s allergic to nuts. The...