By the author of Tribune of the People: A Novel of Ancient Rome, Run West: A Novel of the Civil War, Garbage in Space: And Other Speculative Stories, and Jury of Peers: City Stories. In this collection, a young West Virginia girl trained as a boxer by her father strikes up a troubling, long-distance friendship. An alcoholic blue-collar worker from a poor DC neighborhood searches his inner self after undergoing the ultimate conversion. Summoned to jury duty, a divorced carpenter finds himself neck-deep in a Philly mob case. In a small city museum, the curator crosses paths with two aspiring artists at an avant garde exhibit. Humiliated after dropping a fly ball, a disillusioned boy’s love of the game hinges on the actions of an old major leaguer. A young woman considering her tenth school reunion reminisces to decide.These and seven other stories comprise an array that mine the country’s cultural history during the past half century. Each tale offers vivid characterizations of common people and places as pieces in the puzzle of an ever-changing world. Insights abound in this wide-ranging, thoroughly enjoyable collection well worth reading through and through.