Author Description

The first section of the book is called aFamily Vortex.a It contains five linked stories. The narrative is advanced as each memberas story is told in the third person. Hannah struggles with cancer, when her husband Irwin abandons her. Irwinas affair with Penelope is explored, as is his rise to success in the advertising world, his love for Ethan and inability to love Hannah, Warren or Nina. Ethan, Warren, and Nina then tell their tumultuous stories as a part of this dysfunctional family. aTrapped Hearts, a the second section, contains seven short stories about women trying to resolve their conflicting relationships in order to lead a better life. aWhither Thou Goesta is the story of a Jewish girl caught in a homosexual relationship to escape her smothering mother. The second story called aI Donat Give a Damna is about a teenager coping with her motheras pancreatic cancer. The story aPhotographs, a first printed in Epiphany Fiction Journal, January 2004, is about a young artist coming to terms with her famous father who photographs nude women for a living. The fourth story, aLittle Blessings, a is about a Jewish couple confronting the news that the wife is carrying a baby who will die at birth from a rare genetic disease. The fifth story, aTransactions, a is about three generations of Jewish women who are enmeshed with one another in their real estate business. The sixth story, aTime of Her Life, a is about a student who tries to put her life back together after being raped. The seventh story, aRed Dress, a is about a young girl living on St. Thomas who has to recover from the loss of her mother and form a new relationship with her father.