In “Unfinished Business,” Mark, a single dad with his daughter, Claire, attending Sac State, learns that his wayward ex-wife, Solange, has been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. And now Mark will be forced to take her into their household.
“The Photograph” is about a campus budget analyst captured on film by a famous street photographer. “I like predictability and routine. I favor a closed system with known parameters.” Then he becomes the star of a prestigious gallery exhibition.
“Buxiban Blues” is set in Taiwan at one of the many buxibans or “cram schools” for learning English. Director Will is an American ex-pat who pleases the parents because he’s white; his star teacher, Margaret, California-born with Chinese ancestry, has a more difficult time. “They were two loners and outcasts, each lonesome and sad, each struggling to find new footing in the world.”
“Packing Out” is a harrowing tale of Jon’s fishing junket with his gruff father which goes tragically wrong. In “Search for Florence” actor Van Wheeler searches for legendary Michael Florence in Spain, finally relying on intuition, “an urging beyond language or reason, what could only be described as a yearning.”
In “Parallel Lines” Grant is a middle-school student who falls for classmate Melinda Díaz and must confront his pal’s racism. In “Welcome Back to the World,” the novella traces the aftermath of Dennis’ decision to leave a Buddhist monastery after seven years. He must face trauma, betrayal--and his own hollowness.
Davidson’s stories are like the Zen koans Dennis describes. “A koan doesn’t point the way directly, but works subtly via innuendo, suggestion, and ambiguity.”
Rob Davidson is Nancy Wiegman’s guest on Nancy’s Bookshelf on Northstate Public Radio, mynspr.org, Wednesday, November 27 at 10:00 a.m., repeated Sunday, December 1 at 8:00 p.m. He’ll be signing books Thursday, December 12 at Chico’s 1078 Gallery beginning at 7:30 p.m. The public is invited.
