After a tour of combat abroad, a young man determined to keep to himself is drawn into the dramas of his East Village neighbors
World War II veteran Richard Stone is attempting to transition back into normal life. An aspiring writer, he’s surviving off the GI Bill and the help of friends. Living free of attachments and responsibilities, he thinks, is the best way to defend himself from the world’s pain, like his unhappy upbringing or his best friend’s death in the war.
But his neighborhood on Second Avenue won’t permit such seclusion. The characters around Richard include a lonely poet, an unhappy literary couple, and a widower who can’t stop thinking about the plight of Europe’s Jews. Gradually they pull Richard into their lives, and even introduce him to the lovely Jemmy Gordon—but life and happiness are not so simple.
Daniel Stern (1928–2007) was an American novelist and scholar. Raised in New York City, he was an accomplished cellist and promising composer before he began his writing career. After graduating from the High School of Music and Art in New York, he earned positions with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Houston Symphony and played with renowned jazz musician Charlie Parker. He also served as the vice president of major media companies including Warner Bros. and CBS. In addition to publishing nine novels and three collections of short fiction, Stern also served as the editor of Hampton Shorts. As an author, Stern is celebrated for his explorations of post–World War II Jewish-American life; his novels’ formal experimentation; and, in the short-story genre, his innovation of the “twice-told tale.”