With this, his first collection, Carver breathed new life into the short story. In the pared-down style that has since become his hallmark, Carver showed how humour and tragedy dwell in the hearts of ordinary people, and won a readership that grew with every subsequent brilliant collection of stories, poems and essays that appeared in the last eleven years of his life.

Contents:

• Fat
• Neighbors
• The Idea
• They're Not Your Husband
• Are You a Doctor?
• The Father
• Nobody Said Anything
• Sixty Acres
• What's in Alaska?
• Night School
• Collectors
• What Do You Do in San Francisco?
• The Student's Wife
• Put Yourself in My Shoes
• Jerry and Molly and Sam
• Why, Honey?
• The Ducks
• How about This?
• Bicycles, Muscles, Cigarets
• What is it?
• Signals
• Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?