Living with strangers

Description

Living with Strangers is a collection of individual stories that, when read as a whole, create a singular vision: that of a lonely, stark, even eerie world in which the central characters find themselves, in one way or another, outsiders. The evocation of this world is partially accomplished with a uniform physical setting--most of these stories take place in rural Minnesota, a setting portrayed as isolated, lonely, and claustrophobic. But this external world also parallels the internal spirit of the characters. All of these stories deal in some way with yearning. The characters desire something that seems out of their reach, ungraspable either because of circumstances, the will of others imposed upon them, or, even, their own doubts and fears, turned inward against themselves. In "Twilight" and "Waiting for the End," characters find themselves at a point when, both literally and figuratively, they strain to hear the sound of someone's heart. And in "The Bats, The Disk," "Private Room," and "Out of Body," bats appear to remind the characters of what they lack--the ability to fly mysteriously and effortlessly through life with only an internal radar as guide. The characters here are dreamers who struggle anyway, seeking love, freedom, and the dignity in human or spiritual connection that will confirm their place in a world that moves relentlessly forward, indifferent to their longings.

Subjects