By the New York Times -bestselling author of Moonglow : "When you read these stories, it may strike you how seldom you come across really beautiful writing" ( USA Today ). Cherished by readers and critics alike for such extraordinary novels as The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay , The Mysteries of Pittsburgh , and Wonder Boys, Michael Chabon is at the height of his considerable powers in this striking and bittersweet collection of short stories. An anxious young misfit does nothing to protect his best friend from the scorn of their teachers and classmates. A kleptomaniac real estate agent leads an unhappy couple on a disastrous house tour. A heartbroken grifter finds his ex-girlfriend's grandmother to be an easy mark-and an unexpected source of redemption. Throughout these stories, Chabon's characters, suffused with yearning but crippled by broken love, often find themselves at a crossroads-and faced with sudden insight. Michael Chabon is "Updike without the condescension," wrote James Hynes in the Washington Post Book World, "Cheever without the self-pity, a young American Nabokov who writes with a rueful joie de vivre." In this darkly funny, achingly delicate collection, he renders the compromises of adulthood and the vivid fantasies of childhood with clarity and warmth. This ebook features a biography of the author.