In his latest collection of literary fiction, Mark Brazaitis evokes with sympathy, insight, and humor the lives of characters in a small Ohio town. The ten short stories of The Incurables limn the mental landscape of people facing conditions they believe are insolvable, from the oppressive horrors of mental illness to the beguiling and baffling complexities of romantic and familial love. In the book’s opening story, “The Bridge,” a new sheriff must confront a suicide epidemic as well as his own deteriorating mental health. In “Classmates,” a man sets off to visit the wife of a classmate who has killed himself. Is he hoping to write a story about his classmate or to observe the aftermath of what his own suicide attempt, if successful, would have been like? In the title story, a down-on-his-luck porn actor returns to his hometown and winds up in the mental health ward of the local hospital, where he meets a captivating woman. Other stories in the collection include “A Map of the Forbidden,” about a straight-laced man who is tempted to cheat on his wife after his adulterous father dies, and “The Boy behind the Tree,” about a problematic father-son relationship made more so by the arrival on the scene of a young man the son’s age. In “I Return,” a father narrates a story from the afterlife, discovering as he does so that he is not as indispensable to his family as he had believed.

Incurables, The (Richard Sullivan Prize in Short Fiction)

Literature & Fiction

Brazaitis, Mark

Genre Fiction

University of Notre Dame Press

Drawing on his experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer and trainer, the author pens a collection of stories set in the mountains of Guatemala that reflects the tradition of magic realism and won the Iowa Award for Short Fiction. Original. UP.

The River of Lost Voices: Stories from Guatemala (Iowa Short Fiction Award)

United States

University Of Iowa Press

Steal My Heart: A Novel

Comics & Graphic Novels

Graphic Novels

Van Neste Books

The Other Language, a book of poems by Mark Brazaitis, is, appropriately, about language. It's about English and Spanish, as in the title poem; it's about what we say and what we don't, or won't or can't, say; it's about what we can easily find words for and what we cannot. The Other Language is about Guatemala, a country ravaged by a thirty-six-year-long civil war. It's about Brazaitis' encounters in Guatemala, with North Americans as well as Guatemalans, and about what these encounters inspired him to think, feel, and remember. The Other Language is about love and passion. In the Guatemalan poems, the lovers can be equated with the country itself, which, for Brazaitis, is haunting and beautiful and painful to think of leaving. In the latter part of the book, the love poems-written to Brazaitis' wife and daughters-are both lighthearted and exuberant. The Other Language is about loss. It's about the devastating losses war brings. It's about the loss of a country-something Elizabeth Bishop, who also loved Latin America, understood. It's about the death of Brazaitis' father and the loss, or the potential loss, of so much because of global warming. The Other Language is about the redemptive power of words, of poetry, of beautiful language, to captivate people and bring relief. It's about the laughter and playfulness words can engender, whether it's in a monologue by a Prince Charming who has a surprising political and domestic agenda or in a whimsical reflection on what it means to turn forty. It's about the relationship between language and music, and how sound, whether from word or instrument, is sometimes enough to unite us-or at least bring us closer.

The Other Language

Poetry

ABZ Press

A politically-neutral collection of poetry, prose, and art inspired by the 2008 United States Presidential Election. Contributions from a Grammy award nominee, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship winner, Pushcart award nominees and winners, writers from various continents, university professors, professional artists, and some amateurs too.

A Dream in the Clouds

Crooker, Barbara

Joseph, Allison

Lifshin, Lyn

Atuhaire, Grace

Hostovsky, Paul

Humphrey, Ben

Lang, Susanna

Leary, Mary

Leland, Christopher

Bobo Strategy

A grandfather reluctantly raising his seven-year-old granddaughter throws her a birthday party to which no one comes-and she's delighted. A former hockey player, about to become a father, suffers flashbacks to times his coach sexually abused him. A one-time Olympic hopeful reveals the heartbreaking reason she failed to land her signature jump-and thereby frees herself to find her next passion. Winner of Prize Americana, The Rink Girl may have a small geographic setting-an ice arena in an unassuming Ohio town-but it's wide in thematic scope: from depression and war to the perils and pleasures of parenting and the thrill (and aching brevity) of first love.

The Rink Girl

Short Stories & Anthologies

Press Americana

Winner of the 2004 George Garrett Fiction Prize: Stories "The dozen short stories of An American Affair give us back a clear and accurate reflection of our own world here and now. Linked together by geographical setting and the clash of contemporary cultures, they challenge our easy assumptions with complexity. The characters are wholly credible and fully dimensional. The stories they tell are moving and memorable. This is short fiction at its best and brightest."-George Garrett, final judge "These rich, evocative stories deal with the nuances of truth and inadequacy of language to express or even find truth, even when lying is made more difficult."-Jim Daniels "Wonderfully anchored in place, the stories of An American Affair are provocative and emotionally honest. A good read."-Patricia Henley

An American Affair: Stories

Texas Review Press

Winner of the Gival Press Novel Award--“What a stunning novel! Julia &amp; Rodrigo is ambitious, deeply felt, exquisitely written, masterfully structured, and informed by a wide-ranging knowledge of the culture and politics of Guatemala… In many ways as tragic as Romeo and Juliet, his novel follows its own poignant, yet unsentimental story line to an inevitable, sorrowful, and yet hope-filled end. I read this novel in one sitting late into the night; I could not put it down … An instructive book for readers of all ages and a perfect accompaniment to high school and university courses on Latin America, as well as a compelling book club choice.” —Marnie Mueller

Julia & Rodrigo

Literary

Gival Press

The Manhattan pickpocket Carlton James has come to Guatemala to relax and reform. Alas, he can't help himself: He soon begins to steal the wallets, purses, cameras and other valuables of the international tourists who visit Panajachel, a beautiful lakeside town under volcanoes. One night, he is caught in the act -- by his maid, Rosario, whose history is as murky and tragic as her country's. Initially wary of Rosario, Carlton soon finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.Meanwhile, to catch the thief who threatens local tourism, the police department calls in Ramiro Caal, a detective who proved entirely too successful in solving his last case (evidence in a murder pointed to a high-ranking American official). Retired to his farm, Ramiro has no choice but to accept his latest assignment, and is assisted by his American friend, Ed Shell, a Peace Corps volunteer.In a country where justice is a relative term -- where stealing also applies to indigenous culture and language -- neither Ramiro nor Ed feels comfortable with the task at hand.

Steal My Heart

Romance

His seventh book of fiction, Brazaitis writes a collection of stories that explore the lives of characters with unfortunate luck.

Truth Poker (Autumn House Press Fiction Prize)

Autumn House Press

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Books by Brazaitis, Mark