Burying Saint Joseph

In this oollection of short stories, nature and tradition stand in sharp contrast to contemporary American life. In "Cicadas," a young woman's efforts to gain her freedom from an alcoholic grandmother parallel the onset of a cicada swarm. In "The Casualty," a group of Civil War re-enactors face a real casualty of war. In "Burying Saint Joseph," a middle-aged woman tries to find meaning in an old religious tradition as she and her husband prepare for a new stage of their lives. In all the stories, past meets present, and natural meets industrial, as characters attempt to make sense of their lives.