Bleed

Small Library stamps FLEP & BLEP, price tag FLEP, else content appears as unread and unblemished with good- white boards displaying minor surface/edge wear. Small pieces of tape remaining on front & back.

Overlapping short stories about a group of related young people all take place one Saturday in August. It's a good gimmick, but the precisely written narratives, which are mostly about loneliness, betrayal and heartbreak, are anything but gimmicky. What they are is sad, sad, sad, and since most of the kids that populate Stolarz's desolate teenage landscape live in dysfunctional families and are odious themselves, readers have almost no one to care about. For example, Nicole has sex with her best friend's boyfriend, while the so-called best friend is off meeting her romantic pen pal, a man who's just been released from prison for murdering his girlfriend. Meanwhile, another friend, the emotionally and physically scarred Maria, touches herself in front of her mother's boyfriend for pocket money, while poor overweight Sadie's diet-obsessed mother pins a sign to her shirt that says, "Please Do Not Feed Sadie." Although this collection ends on a note of hope, it is almost unbearably bleak.

Shipping/Handling/Insurance/Tracking Included within the continental U.S. (Free Shipping). Extra Charges/Fees apply on Shipments Outside The U.S. and Expedited Shipments. Oversize and/or heavy books may require additional fees. Will advise. Written 8.22.2021SK #5384-82521 Img.6630 8.25.21