by David Rodeback (Author)

"New and full of surprises." -2025 Utah Book Awards

"Every emotional payoff, whether flash-of-lightning funny or tearfully joyful, is earned through a rich depth of honesty that is the polar opposite of sentimentality." -Darrin McGraw, coauthor of Animal Future.

This collection of contemporary short fiction includes a novella with a Father's Day vibe, The Dad Who Stayed, and a dozen short stories.

In The Dad Who Stayed (a novella) Joey Robinson and his mom live in part of a house in an early-1970s progressive university town. He never met his dad, who left before Joey was born. When he was old enough to wonder about not having a dad, his mom said it was okay.

But when his kindergarten teacher disapproves, and Joey uses his dad as an excuse to run away too, his mom invites a man named Jack into their life. Now Joey wonders: Will he have to start calling this man Dad-and does he want to?

Twelve short stories in this collection explore friendship, family, love, memory, and loss in ordinary lives scattered from middle school to old age.

Guaranteed safe checkout: