Afoot in a Field of Men

The first-person narrator is Taylor herself, still a ""hippie'' in her late 30s, and barely eking out a living on society's fringes in various Texas cities. Burdened by money problems, lack of living space and the arrival of first one, then all, of her three children from her first marriage, Taylor struggles to keep together body, soul and romance with insolvent poet Leo. Through the eyes of another writer, her travails would be numbingly depressing. But Taylor has a wry, occasionally self-mocking wit, a sharp eye for telling detail and a talent for lyrical descriptions (``The shadows of trees . . . is the sweetest of balms, licking the excess heat of the day off the skin like dark tongues''). The title piece brings to life the experience of being a temporary secretary in Dallasor anywhere. ``A Clouded Visit with Rolling Thunder'' is a hilariously low-key account of a New Age truthseeker's interview with an Indian sage. ``News from El Corazon in the Composing Room'' details the snowballing mayhem that results from Taylor's offer to help out a needy neighbor. Definitely a collection to be savored. (January)