by James Salter
First published 1990
James Salter crafts eleven stories that examine the fragile connections between men and women across different stages of life. In one tale, a middle-aged man confronts the dissolution of his marriage during a tense dinner conversation. Another follows a young pilot whose wartime experiences shape his understanding of mortality and desire. Salter moves between characters facing moments of reckoning: a woman discovering her husband's infidelity, friends whose loyalty fractures under pressure, lovers whose passion cannot survive the weight of ordinary life. Each story captures people at turning points where they must choose between safety and risk, between what they have and what they want. The collection reveals how small gestures and brief encounters can alter the course of a life, showing characters who struggle to connect authentically with others while confronting their own limitations and desires.
Genres: short-stories, literary-fiction, american-fiction, 20th-century, contemporary, adult-fiction
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: character-study, slice-of-life
157 pages · Hardcover · Jonathan Cape