Great jacket photograph, eh?
Like many people I used to be a fiction snob and would not read short stories, or would avoid them, if at all possible. I have changed my tune in the last few years and am glad that I did because I have read a few collections which have really paid off. One collection I really liked was Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It, by Maile Meloy.
In Nine Inches, I found another collection that I enjoyed. Tom Perrotta is at his best when he writes about the lives of high school students, their parents and teachers. Election stood out as one of the best books about that subject. The short stories in NIne Inches are all good except the one about baseball. For some reason, that is a subject I have no interest in delving into (sorry, Grandpa G.), no matter how well written the story.
Lots of the characters in these stories are just plain sad, but even the saddest are not without hope and charm. Some will argue that there is no resolution to some of the dilemmas faced by the characters, but isn't that what life is all about? Just trying to keep on keeping on?
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