Bogaty (author of Loves and Entanglements) weaves a series of loosely connected short stories of people desperately pining for moments and feelings just outside their grasp. In “But Not For Me” and “Nicky and Cat: A Romance,” older males fall hopelessly in love with college-aged women, in parallel relationships that, despite intense feelings, are eventually ended by the women involved, in heartbreaking tones of regret amid desires to experience the world before settling down, heavy sentiment that laments “people’s lives aren’t like this. Nothing is this perfect. It’s not real.”

That elusive wisp of happiness breathes throughout the collection, evoked by the “smoky darkness” of blues singer Elsa, who makes a repeat appearance and sings the background to Jamie’s heartache in the titular story, as he mourns the breakup of his relationship with attorney Abigail and reflects on his “sad procession of women.” Choices that torment the protagonists are a running theme, as with "In Saint-Remy And Auvers," where a pregnant woman teeters on the edge of indecision about whether she should keep her baby and raise it with her partner, musing, after a visit to a Van Gogh museum, that "All I see are Vincent's paths, incongruously converging, each one a wrong choice."

Bogaty touches deeply on how irrational desire can be, as his characters follow their longings despite recognizing it's a bad idea. Not all of those longings are sexual or romantic, however; "Talya, And Dolly's Comb" finds a young Mongolian girl craving acceptance and belonging in Turkey, while Victoria, in "To Grandmother's House We Go," aches for just a few more stolen moments with the one member of her family who “took genuine pleasure from her existence on the earth.” Bogaty forgoes magical healings and happy endings in favor of poignant memories, crafting stories where it hurts to feel this deeply, but it's also what makes his characters human.

Takeaway: Deeply humane collection about loss, yearning, and fleeting connections.

Comparable Titles: Emma Duffy-Comparone’s Love Like That, Ottessa Moshfegh’s Homesick for Another World.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B
Marketing copy: A