Stories in the Key of C. Minor.

Sinister, dark, foreboding. C Minor stories are fictions that strike a dissonant chord and leave the reader unsettled, and quite possibly looking over his shoulder. Or her shoulder, often, as it seems to be the women who are most at risk in Russell Bittner's world. These stories explore an unpleasant side of New York and New Yorkers, one that appears to represent the pain and anger that many people have felt since 9/11. The stories (five short stories and a novella) often deal with sudden, unexplained events and traumatic loss. In “Collisions,” for example, Maggie literally bumps into Jorg on the subway one morning and their attraction is instantaneous. What happens next can't be anticipated, or explained. In a most horrific story, “Waltzing Matilda,” (which struck me as a story Flannery O'Connor might have written if she'd been a Manhattanite), busy real estate agent Susan gives a lift to a leather-clad pedestrian. He's been affected by what happened on 9/11, and now so is she. Except he has other business to attend to, that is even more disturbing. “In the Animal Kingdom” deals most directly with 9/11 and sudden loss and is the most poignant of the stories here, and probably my favorite for that reason.

In all the stories, Bittner uses language beautifully. They are crisply told tales, each gripping in its way, and the collection as a whole is highly rewarding.