Heroism and identity are rarely recognized in everyday life. Many expect movie-level events that show a singular hero rising from the ashes of tragedy to save the world from some grand threat, and yet real heroism is found in everyday life. Whether that is the mother who finds a beloved lost toy for their child, or the soldier who pushes another soldier out of the path of incoming fire, or a sibling who stands up to a bully to protect their brother or sister, heroism can be found in everyone and can also be the best path to learning who a person is in life.
That level of heroism is what drives author Ivan Prashker’s Hazardous Pay, Shirt Talk and Twenty-Four Other Stories. The short story collection offers snippets of everyday events of Americans from all walks of life, from young girls facing the death of childhood innocence to an elderly mother waiting for a sign her son had survived as a POW. Through these ordinary individuals this book shows the power of strength through kindness, and the ways in which people find their true identity.
Relatable in so many ways, each of these stories offers not only characters that readers can see themselves in but situations that are grounded in reality and highlight the struggles of everyday people. The collection is defined by a sense of realism and connection which readers will easily connect with, and the level of detail and connection readers make with the characters in such a short amount of time is thrilling to see come to life on the pages. The stories themselves pack a lot of imagery into the writing style, allowing each character and setting to feel attainable and something a person could easily step into themselves.
For readers who enjoy short story collections, especially those that fuse short form drama and family storytelling with military and war action thriller settings will absolutely love this book. The powerful themes resonate greatly with the general audience, from the need which comes from duty and honor for those who serve, to the ways in which conflict of all types can shape a person’s life, and the many contradictions of life that often showcase the truth of human nature. The tension and conflict these stories present mirror daily life greatly, and the characters’ ways of dealing with each scenario shows an emotional intelligence in the author’s writing style and the readers’ ability to feel the character’s larger emotional moments in each story as well.
