Why I Love Nathan's and Other Stories
by Pamela L. Laskin
ISBN: 978-1-935444-16-9
Why I Love Nathan's and Other Stories is a collection of short stories by Pamela L. Laskin.
Larry Farber is about to turn thirteen, and his initiation into manhood is not complete without a visit to Nathan's of Oceanside where his father, Sam Farber, shares his love of hot dogs with his young son, and attempts to shape the boy into the man he would like for him to become. Larry Farber grows up to love Nathan's, too, but chooses to define himself differently: as a confused and troubled writer, as controlling as his father had once been, and plagued by many of Sam Farber's demons. WHY I LOVE NATHAN'S AND OTHER STORIES is a collection of Nathan's related stories: an eclectic cast of characters, many of whom are sad and lonely and are bound by their love for Nathan's and their inability to fathom the complexities of the universe. Larry Farber stands at the center of this "Nathan's" family constellation, and as is marriage dissolves, his young son moves emotionally away from him and the world changes, themes of loneliness, alienation, confusion abound. Though there are non-Nathan's stories in the collection, it nevertheless functions as a novella, since the main characters are revisited at different points in the book. Over half the stories in the collection have been published in journals and magazines.
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