Since Joyce Carol Oates is one of my heroes and a prolific writer that I would dare to emulate, the short story is one of my favorite writing forms. Mostly because I can think of so many stories and scenarios surrounding a variety of people that I believe would make a good read. This latest collection, which features stories around working people who are doing what they can to make a living and survive in life, features people who sometimes find their true calling beyond what they originally signed up for.
My inspiration, as always, is the individual who struggles in life and does what she can to make the most of it. From the family run restaurant, to the woman selling her card shop after decades, to a man who realizes his dream of running a variety store that after just a few years gets over-shadowed by and out of business when a major supermarket comes to town, each story is full of emotions both full of happiness and disappointment. And then there is a woman looking for answers at church when her husband passes too soon and a woman who finds love surrounded by her 1st love of books. The stories are sometimes heart-wrenching but they wouldn’t have meaning to me if they didn’t hit an emotional nerve or two.
