Referred Pain

"In the title novella, Koslowski, beset by a kind of survivor's guilt, insists to the point of absurdity that his elaborate dental work is emblematic of his immigrant parents' suffering in World War II. In "Francesca," a mild-mannered professor finds himself calmly contemplating incest, and in "Hostages to Fortune," a seemingly conventional couple construct a sadly macabre version of family life. The journalist in "Sightings of Loretta" realizes he has spent years pursuing a chimerical, unfulfilled romance, while oblivious to his own wife. Several of the stories take place in the surreal realm of fantasy itself; "Deadly Nightshade" is a whimsical conjecture about the first woman brave enough to eat a tomato, long considered poisonous."--Jacket.