From Library Journal
This is a collection of finely crafted stories from Irish author Gebler, son of Edna O'Brien. Gebler's finest quality is to take the ordinary and infuse it with the pain and misfortune that permeates everyday life. In stories that move from London to Ireland to Mexico to Cuba, Gebler's characters grapple over lost Christmas bonuses, vicious dogs, fear of roadblocks, dead bodies, and lost family. In every story, there is a marked poignancy in the way characters relate to one another and how their relationships flourish or fade in times of crisis. Gebler skillfully negotiates his characters through the landmine of life, somehow leaving them better off for the experience. This is the first North American printing of these stories, and one hopes that more of Gebler's works will become available in the United States. Highly recommended.?Dianna Moeller, WLN, Lacey, Washington
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
This collection of short stories by the award-winning Gebler (who, despite his Spanish name, is a native of Ireland) shows his virtuosity at finding drama in any situation and pushing characters to the brink. In the title story, a Polish emigrein London whose son has committed suicide tries to calm his wife about it, but, after three years, he feels it was partly their fault. Together, they ritually bury their son and their guilt. In the opener, a Chekhov scholar in a volatile 40-year marriage writes a fragment in his diary late one night after another argument and realizes he is dying. In "Telephone Sex," late-night phone calls drive a woman to accuse her fianceof infidelity, ruining her chance for the marriage she longed for. In "Connemara," a college student hunts down his estranged father, only to find clues that mean too much or not enough. Throughout all the stories, the full weight of human needs and shortcomings forces minor interactions to appear as larger parables.
Kevin Grandfield
