First published 2011
A VA hospital nurse's aide faces an unexpected visitor from her family's past, forcing her to reckon with memories she thought she had buried. In another story, a father must choose between his daughter and grandson when their needs collide. A woman travels with her daughter to a German alternative medicine clinic, desperate to save her mother's life through unconventional treatment. In Morocco, a mother vacations with her family while secretly planning a decision that will destroy their current life but free her from its constraints. These eight interconnected tales follow characters navigating the sudden shifts that upend ordinary existence. A temporary worker discovers how fleeting human connections can be. Three sisters trapped in a snowstorm realize their childhood is ending. Silver creates people who stumble through relationship complexities with a mix of fear and unexpected bravery. Each story captures the moment when characters recognize both what they know about themselves and what remains foreign, even to their own understanding.
Genres: short-stories, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Germany, Morocco, VA Hospital
Period: 21st-century
176 pages · Paperback · Simon & Schuster
Content warnings: depression, mental-illness