In these eight stories Joyce Carol Oates unparalleled as an investigator into the intricacies of human failing deftly tests the bonds between damaged individuals—a brother and sister a teacher and student two strangers on a subway—in the fearless prose for which she is justly celebrated.<br><br><P>In the title story a white aspiring professor is convinced she is being followed. No need to panic—she has a handgun stowed away in her purse just in case. But when she turns to confront her black male shadow the situation isn’t what she expects. In “The Rescuer” a promising graduate student detours to inner-city Trenton New Jersey to save her brother from a downward spiral. But she soon finds out there may be more to his world than to hers. And in “The Last Man of Letters” the world-renowned author X embarks on a final grand tour of Europe. He has money fame but not a whole lot of manners. A little thing like etiquette couldn’t bring a man like X down could it? In these biting and beautiful pieces Oates confronts one by one the demons within us demonstrating that sometimes it’s not the human side that wins out.<br><br>Contents:<li>“The Home at Craigmillnar” read by Ray Chase<li>“High” read by Donna Postel<li>“Toad-Baby” read by Luci Christian<lI>“Demon” read by Chris Patton<li>“Lorelei” read by Tamara Marston<li>“The Rescuer” read by Julia Whelan<lI>“The Last Man of Letters” ready by Ray Chase<li>“High Crime Area” read by Julia Whelan