After the Gold Rush: stories

Lewis Buzbee gives us stories that explore what is both sharply dangerous and utterly necessary about family life. After the Gold Rush finds families tested by inside and outside forces - when life conspires to tear them apart. Lewis Buzbee is a master at capturing what is so remarkable about the American family. Buzbee's families cope, they figure out what comes next and get on with the business of living. These stories share a common thread: how to live after the disaster, after the gold rush is over. Buzbee's characters dream big and love deep, and each story in the collection is raw at the core, wholly memorable, and dedicated to the courage of loving. Anchoring the collection is the story of a 17-year-old high school junior who defects for a time to the Soviet Union and becomes (of all things) a writer, returning eventually to the Best Westerns of America. Each story provides Buzbee with a new leverage on contemporary culture. Even as Buzbee's characters fight for balance, they find ways to make good on love and devotion within the contraption that is the American family.