Should you intervene in the life of the 48-year-old woman whose dwelling is stuffed with accumulated rubbish and who will not let anyone help get rid of it or the 78-year-old surrounded by putrescent food and filth or the 'animal accumulator'? Cases of severe domestic squalor (sometimes called Diogenes Syndrome) are among the most complex and difficult faced by community agencies. Local councils, housing officers, health professionals, social services, animal welfare agencies, public guardians and of course relatives and neighbours often feel powerless and lack confidence about what to do...

A collection of short stories that follows the lives of the damned living and dying young in America. A pact between friends turns horribly wrong. A day on the river ends in tragedy. A soldier tries desperately to find shelter in a place where light cannot shine. From the schoolyard gallows to a garden drawn from the shade, journey with the unfortunate souls washed away by a remorseless current to where the River Ends.