Break Any Woman Down
The nine stories collected here deservedly won the Flannery  O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. In each, Johnson explores the  interactions among men and women, women and women, parents and  children, whites and blacks, young and old, and the living and  the dying most vainly searching for a place to be, physically  and/or emotionally. Some of the characters appear in more than  one story; readers watch them age, gain knowledge, and continue  to look for something they think is missing from their lives.  The stories are full of the small details and disappointments of  life, the missed opportunities and the inopportune moments that  change one's trajectory. With its use of explicit language, this  collection challenges the emotions and requires contemplation.  Recommended for most collections. Joanna M. Burkhardt, Univ. of  Rhode Island, Providence Campus Lib.Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.