"And for God's sake, don't let me ever hear you say, 'I can't read fiction. I only have time for the truth.' Fiction is the truth, fool! Ever hear of 'literature'? That means fiction too, stupid." -John Waters
Smart, whimsical, and often scathing, the fiction of Kurt Vonnegut influenced a generation of American writers -- including Dave Eggers, author of this volume’s Foreword. In these previously unpublished gems, Vonnegut’s originality infuses a unique landscape of factories, trailers, and bars -- and characters who pit their dreams and fears against a cruel and sometimes comically indifferent world. Learn More
By the time of his early death in 1988, Raymond Carver had established himself as one of the great practitioners of the American short story, a writer who had not only found his own voice but imprinted it in the imaginations of thousands of readers. Learn More
Elmore Leonard, a literary icon praised by The New York Times Book Review as "the greatest crime writer of our time, perhaps ever," has captured the imagination of millions of readers with his more than three dozen books. Learn More
When it happens to you, you will be surprised. That thing they say about how you knew all the time, but just weren't facing it? That might be the case, but nevertheless, there you will be. Learn More
Called "a ranting comic showman and a literary provocateur" by The New York Times, Taylor Mali writes eloquently and entertainingly about his experiences in and out of the middle school classroom. Learn More