{"product_id":"pictures-of-the-shark-stories-9781680032710","title":"Pictures of the Shark: Stories","description":"\u003cb\u003e2023 Foreword Reviews INDIES Awards Finalist in Literary Fiction \u003cbr\u003e 2023 Houston Chronicle Notable Book \u003cbr\u003e 2023 Massachusetts Book Award Must-Read\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"An emotionally taut and often haunting collection.\" \u003cbr\u003e --\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e(starred review) \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"[An] always compelling novel in short stories.\" \u003cbr\u003e --\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eForeword Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"[A] powerful family portrait ... heartbreaking authenticity.\" \u003cbr\u003e --\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e Online Exclusive \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"A tightly written and often emotionally gripping collection.\" \u003cbr\u003e --\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLone Star Literary Life\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e A sudden snowfall in Houston reveals family secrets. A trip to Universal Studios to snap a picture of the shark from \u003ci\u003eJaws\u003c\/i\u003e becomes a battle of wills between father and son. A midnight séance and the ghost of Janis Joplin conjure the mysteries of sex. A young boy's pilgrimage to see Elvis Presley becomes a moment of transformation. A young woman discovers the responsibilities of talent and freedom. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003ePictures of the Shark\u003c\/i\u003e, by award-winning Houston writer Thomas H. McNeely, moves from its protagonist Buddy Turner's surreal world of childhood into the wider arenas of sex, addiction, art, and ambition. Appearing in the country's finest literary journals, including \u003ci\u003ePloughshares\u003c\/i\u003e, The \u003ci\u003eVirginia Quarterly Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eEpoch\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eCrazyhorse\u003c\/i\u003e, shortlisted for the O. Henry Award, Best American Short Stories, and Pushcart Prize collections, the stories in \u003ci\u003ePictures of the Shark\u003c\/i\u003e are gems that refract their characters' complex relationships. \u003cbr\u003e ... \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003efrom \u003ci\u003ePictures of the Shark\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eIf he said yes, Buddy knew, he would have to keep his father's secret. \"Yes, sir,\" he said. \"I'd like that.\" When they walked up the broken cement path to their house, his mother watched them, her face blurred and ghostly behind a porch screen. As always when his father appeared, she stood very still, as if afraid to startle him. His father stopped, one foot on the bottom step. His mother asked if he could come in. Just for a minute.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAn East Side Houston native, THOMAS H. McNEELY has published short stories and non-fiction in \u003ci\u003eThe Atlantic, Texas Monthly, Ploughshares, \u003c\/i\u003eand many other magazines and anthologies, including \u003ci\u003eBest American Mystery Stories \u003c\/i\u003eand Algonquin Books' \u003ci\u003eBest of the South\u003c\/i\u003e. His stories have been short-listed for the \u003ci\u003ePushcart Prize\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBest American Short Stories \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eO. Henry Award \u003c\/i\u003eanthologies. He has received National Endowment for the Arts, Wallace Stegner, and MacDowell Colony fellowships for his fiction. His first book, \u003ci\u003eGhost Horse\u003c\/i\u003e, won the Gival Press Novel Award and was shortlisted for the William Saroyan International Prize in Writing. He currently teaches in the Stanford Online Writing Studio and at Emerson College, Boston.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Texas Review Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50387289506066,"sku":"9781680032710","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_caf91365-f62a-4cdb-914f-25e113b9afd5.jpg?v=1728876844","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/pictures-of-the-shark-stories-9781680032710","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}