Michael Burge
A collection of ten stories, variations on a theme: hiding from the truth. The matron who interprets her sexual desire as physical pain, obsessed with one of her nurses to the point of stalking. The father who has liaisons with men at public toilets, and the kid who works out he knows the bloke. The painter who is out but not too proud, not until she’s achieved something with her life, and the Auschwitz survivor she must care for in her day job. The mother who tries to find ‘the right girl’ for her son, only to come face-to-face with his male partner. The daughter who finds her gay uncle on Facebook and confronts her Christian father about his homophobia in one insightful email. The teenager who realises at Bible camp that he’s as gay as one of the teachers, and the girl who unwittingly pursues him. The artist who rents a room to his childhood friend, only to face the consequences of the secrets they tease out of one another. The country woman who is not sure if what she sees from her back step is real or not, and the grandson who comes out to her in a postcard. Captured at the crossroads of their lives, these people face choices between extraordinary heroism and cowardice. 3
