A startling collection of 13 connected personal narratives, capturing the collision of youthful longing and the hard intransigence of fate and time. Jo Ann Beard's piece ' The 4th state of matter' was chosen by Bill Buford to appear in the New Yorker's July Special fiction issue. It is a tale based on Beard's own life and is an extroadinary example of the recent trend of non-fiction that reads like fictionThe pieces in this book range from a devastating account of a random shoot out at Beard's workplace to a stunning evocation of a drive through the Arizona desert to reminiscences of the boys of her youth to splitting up with her husband and the death of her mother. She writes with a unique perception about both the blandly domestic side of existence abd the unexpected events in life over which we have no control. Her subjects are love, loss, abandonment, the importance of strong friendships with female friends,her betrayal by men, the landscapes of America, dogs...Jo Ann Beard has a remarkable and original voice, and these short pieces of personal history are incredibly moving, funny and utterly compelling. They herald the arrival of a brilliant young writer.