Publisher's Weekly
Edited by Stone ( Outerbridge Reach ), this collection of 20 skillful stories (nine originated in the New Yorker ) strikes many melancholy chords. Amy Bloom's tortured schizophrenic commits suicide; Tim Gautreaux limns a Depression-era pump repairman who is wooed and ultimately mugged and robbed by a widow who murdered her husband; and in a story by Reynolds Price, a white man's adulterous affair with a black woman in 1940s North Carolina shatters his family and endangers his lover's life. Rick Bass depicts the depravity of two developers of a Montana valley; Joyce Carol Oates conveys the viciousness of a suburban community; Robert Olen Butler imagines an aged Vietnamese living in New Orleans who fears his son-in-law and grandson are involved in the murderous deeds of an anti-Communist group; and Marshall Klimasewiski's Korean emigre suffers guilt over her miscarriage and her self-imposed exile. Three highlights here are Christopher Tilghman's evocation of an ex-Wall Streeter who abandons his family; Alice Munro's story of a small-town Canadian librarian who never gets over being jilted in the wake of WW I by a beau she has never met; and Mavis Gallant's tale--which adds a welcome note of irony and whimsy--about a headstrong Parisian who throws a monkey wrench into her wedding plans. (Nov.)

Library Journal
A veritable treasure trove, this anthology features 20 stories published in North American magazines, written by such notables as Joyce Carol Oates as well as by relative newcomers. Many of these absorbing tales derive from personal experience, and while the subject matter varies, the writing is consistently of high quality. The authors write movingly and masterfully, describing experiences ranging from a marine's battles in Vietnam to a young couple's attempt to deal with a miscarriage. The tales not only engage but serve as an inspiration and resource for others interested in writing short stories. In addition to the stories, editor Stone features Contributors' Notes, which offer the authors' insights and anecdotes about their stories; 100 Other Distinguished Short Stories of 1991; and a listing of Editorial Addresses of Canadian and American Magazines Publishing Short Stories. Recommended.-- Kimberly G. Allen, National Assn. of Home Builders Lib., Washington, D.C.