Many Worlds: Some American Odysseys (Paperback)

This brilliant collection of twenty short stories by prose and poetry writer M. Kaat Toy provides an entertaining yet poignant portrayal of life in America. It is also an exploration of contemporary work and social issues looked at through the lenses of society, culture, and geography. Readers will meet Sarah, who searches for coins in a laundromat on her way home from work; Claire, who wants only three things out of life: to live at the beach, to have blonde hair, and to be able to drink Cokes; Kim, confined to a wheelchair, who is having problems in school because of issues with her mother and caregiver; Christine and Philip, who have everything life can offer except the red leather cowboy boots they swindle from a friend; and Megan, who travels to Los Angeles from her home in Vermont to visit her dysfunctional family and dying grandmother. These are absorbing characters and plots that will lead readers to look a bit differently at the world in which we live.