Funny, incisive, heartbreaking, and at times wickedly cynical, this eclectic collection of short fiction by Steven Mayfield mines the soul of the American character, unearthing hope and despair, goodness and gloom, largesse and larceny. With four new versions of previously published work and five new stories.

Funny, incisive, heartbreaking, and at times wickedly cynical, this eclectic collection of short fiction by Steven Mayfield mines the soul of the American character, unearthing hope and despair, goodness and gloom, largesse and larceny. With four new versions of previously published work and five new stories.

With the Spanish flu pandemic on the rise, a former gold rush town— once the largest city in the Pacific Northwest— is threatened with extinction via eminent domain should their population fall below 125 citizens. To save their homes, former madam Maude Dollarhyde, her mixed-race grand-daughter, Bountiful, and their fellow council members agree to sell four abandoned mansions for a penny apiece if the buyers will stay in town long enough to be counted in the 1920 census. Soon, an eclectic cast of newcomers arrives, including a New York actor and his...