I've read six or seven of these stories. The one about the lout selling fraudulent homing pigeons had a brilliant ending, as did the one about the former college professor toiling on a boat, as did "Bug Man." Gautreaux writes in such a dense, detail-filled way (e.g. about engine minutiae) that it's hard to breeze through these stories. But if you set aside some time and put on your thinking cap, you'll be rewarded. I prefer more abstract, flowing prose, personally, so I don't think this style will ever be my cup of tea, but I could see most (or all) of them being made into successful short films, where the camera can explain in 5 seconds what it takes an author 5 minutes of your reading time to get across.

I first encountered [a:Tim Gautreaux's wotk in an anthology of Southern Christmas stories that included "Deputy Sid's Gift," the last story in this collection. It's one of the best modern Christmas tales I've ever read. Not every story in this collection has the redemptive quality I found in "Deputy Sid's Gift," in fact, some are downright sad. But I didn't find one dud story in the whole book. This man can write; he has an ear for the way people talk that rivals John Sayles', and he writes about these hardscrabble strawberry farmers, oil rig workers, truckdrivers and tugboatmen -- and the women who love or hate them -- with love, not condescension. Since this is part of the shelf-clearing project, I'll pass it on to the library book sale so someone else can enjoy it, but I'll be looking for Gautreaux's other work. Highly recommended. ( )

I wanted each and every story to continue on, into a full scale novel. Love this writer, definitely one of my "re-reads". ( )