Twelve Post-War Tales

The stories in this perceptive collection from Swift (Last Orders) follow ordinary people impacted by historic tragedies. In “The Next Best Thing,” a German official, asked by a British soldier in 1959 to help locate his Jewish relatives who went missing during WWII, is reminded of his experience as a POW in England. The 72-year-old doctor at the center of “Blushes” comes out of retirement to treat Covid-19 patients and recalls his 10th birthday party when he was diagnosed with scarlet fever. In “Zoo,” a Filipino maid at the U.S. embassy in London develops an obsessive relationship with a young charge and takes him to the zoo on 9/11. “Fireworks” explores the stubbornness and unspoken trauma of a WWII bombardier who insists his daughter’s wedding proceed despite the ongoing Cuban Missile Crisis, while “Passport” follows an octogenarian woman who, while renewing her passport, remembers being orphaned in London during the war. Swift amply shades in the various ways his characters are affected by the long shadow of war or disaster. These finely tuned tales lend new meaning to the phrase “conflict resolution.” Agent: Caradoc King, United Agents. (May)