Bad Dreams and Other Stories

Two sisters quarrel over an inheritance and a new baby; a child, awake in the night, explores the familiar rooms of her home, made strange by the darkness; a housekeeper caring for a helpless old man uncovers secrets from his past. The first steps into a turning point and a new life are made so easily and carelessly: each of these stories illuminates crucial moments of transition often imperceptible to the protagonists. A girl accepts a lift in a car from some older boys; a young woman reads the diaries she discovers while house-sitting. Small acts have large consequences, some that can reverberate across decades; private fantasies can affect other people, for better or worse. The real things that happen to people, the accidents that befall them, are every bit as mysterious as their longings and dreams.