false 219586 2 In the 16 stories of <I>Extremities</I>, Kathe Koja enters the lives of ordinary people caught in extraordinary and often disturbing situations. In "Bird Superior," for example, a plane-crash survivor trades his memory of the crash for the ability to fly. "Angels in Love" is the story of Lurleen, a washed-out woman trapped in a meaningless cycle of dead-end work, singles bars, and solitude. She lives vicariously by eavesdropping on Anne, a neighbor who seems to have found the passion and sexual satisfaction that eludes Lurleen. Upon meeting Anne, however, she discovers an even more meaningless life: Anne has made the ultimate trade, exchanging her soul for physical fulfillment. In "The Ballad of the Spanish Civil Guard," an imprisoned poet who writes on behalf of the dispossessed shares the last moments of his life with the reader. Although the location of the prison is unclear, the scene recalls the Franco regime. The poet chooses to die rather than face a life without his writing, but, in his final seconds, he takes solace that his remains may one day form the body of a new poet. <P><I>Extremities</I> is Koja's sixth book. Her writing is lush and poetic, yet at the same time she leaves much unsaid, counting on the reader to ground the stories with his or her own sense of place. Koja's blend of mundane characters, supernatural or at least unexplained situations, and a constant undercurrent of the erotic, is a satisfying and disturbing gateway into another world. Each story, unique in character and setting, gives a snapshot of an existence where reality and nightmares collide. <I>--Andy Bookwalter</I> 2038477 1998 Extremities total:34|5:15|4:9|3:6|2:4|1:0| 34 137 49 2 4 1 false false Mon Jun 12 00:00:00 -0700 2000 Mon Feb 11 10:57:36 -0800 2008 Mon Feb 11 10:57:36 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Jun 13 01:39:30 -0700 2008 Fri Jun 13 01:39:57 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Sat Nov 28 23:25:03 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 28 23:25:03 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Nov 28 17:58:05 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 28 17:58:05 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Tue Nov 24 16:12:26 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 24 16:12:26 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Thu Nov 12 22:01:41 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 22:01:41 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sat Oct 10 03:38:59 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 10 03:39:07 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Oct 08 17:02:27 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 08 17:02:27 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Sat Jul 18 17:35:31 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 18 17:35:31 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Wed Jul 15 14:36:44 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 15 14:36:44 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri Jul 10 11:35:55 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 10 11:35:55 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri May 29 22:23:49 -0700 2009 Fri May 29 22:23:49 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Sun May 31 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon May 25 06:44:20 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 01 08:35:23 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri May 08 09:55:14 -0700 2009 Fri May 08 09:55:14 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2002 Thu Apr 02 19:07:06 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 02 19:07:20 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Mar 18 17:20:01 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 17:20:01 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Sun Jan 04 15:08:19 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 04 15:08:19 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Dec 07 05:16:47 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 05:16:50 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Wed Dec 03 05:45:20 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 03 05:45:22 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Mon Nov 24 01:34:34 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 24 01:34:36 -0800 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=2033746