Getting Stronger at the Broken Places: (And Other Stories)

By Frank Owen Du Bois

In this compelling collection of short stories, Frank Owen du Bois explores the different ways in which people transcend adversity and tragedy. These insightful explorations of human nature show us characters who struggle to be better, and also characters who have given up, but who have hope given to them in unexpected or even unwelcome ways. Mack, the suffering protagonist of Cadillac Mack Is Dreaming Again, endures a brutal Montana winter, not sure whether he is awake or asleep, his identity blurred from alcoholism and the violent, tragic past he relives every night in his dreams. In Mister & Missus Birdsong, two delightfully off-kilter people fall in love at a New Zealand hotel, and find that their craziness, together, adds up to a newly discovered sanity. The title story, Getting Stronger at the Broken Places, explores the crucial crossroads of a man who lost everything he loved in an instant, went looking for a place to die, and was given a new life instead. With a strong message that love has the power to raise the human spirit, Getting Stronger at the Broken Places gives the gift of vividly imagined tales full of inspiring emotional truth, showing us that even the most damaged people can have the courage to carry on, survive, and triumph.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1432775405
• ISBN13: 9781432775407
• Release Date: November 2011
• Publisher: Outskirts Press
• Length: 216 Pages
• Weight: 0.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.5" x 5.0"