From Publishers Weekly
The author of the admired novel The Man Who Owned Vermont has a gift for evoking the quiet--sometimes quietly desperate--lives of seemingly conventional Americans, often couples at odds with each other, struggling through divorce or worrying about their children. He writes cleanly, precisely and with imagination. Yet most of these tales are dismayingly slight, almost tentative exercises that fail to come to life. In the title story, one of the best here, young parents cope with a child's sleeping problem. "Christmas Presents," similar in many ways, is overly sentimental. "Garage Sale" and "Burglars" both suggest potentially interesting undercurrents of violence but are disappointingly unrealized. "What About My Lawn" is a gimmicky tale of a woman's frustrated revenge that is quite unprepared for. Some stories, "Night" and "Work," for example, seem like mere sketches from the author's notebook. "Brothers" is fashionably symbolist and minimalist at once. The collection, the work of a talented writer apparently marking time, might have been better left unpublished.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
In this collection of 15 stories, Lott ( The Man Who Owned Vermont, A Stranger's House ) evokes emotion as well as scene. We thus become caught up in the little adventures of his characters, average people living average lives. Refreshingly, most are nice people, such as the father in the title story who loves his son with gentleness and understanding. Unfortunately, two of the least successful stories appear near the beginning, discouraging further reading as they leave characters and hence readers stranded by abrupt endings. More effective are stories like "What About My Lawn?", about a woman with her own problems who rebuffs a drunken neighbor using her family woes as an excuse for drink, or "Burglars," in which a confrontation with intruders serves to unite three estranged neighbors. Enjoyable stories with backbone. For larger public libraries.
- M . J. Simmons, Duluth P . L., Minn.Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
