In Their Own Words

Quintet is a collection of five novellas described below.

The Ultimate Success: A businessman, well respected in his community, commits business fraud, bringing disgrace on himself and his family. After faking a suicide he secludes himself with a mistress on a Pacific island only to be pursued and brought to justice by an insurance company's inspector. This novella is quite current in view of the dishonest CEOs in the news these days.

Family Agendas: A Jewish son marries a Catholic girl against his mother's wishes. His father does not keep his promise to turn the family business over to him. This novella deals with issues such as generational conflict, aging, religious prejudice and letting go.

Ambition: Concerns racial and religious prejudice in business, and the seeking of power. A liberal Jewish executive discovers his racial prejudice when he refuses to work for a black president. We humans are a well of unplumbed depths.

A Son's Father, A Father's Son: A story about the tragic consequences wrought by war on innocent participants. A celebrity father and his son find common ground in their respective shocking experiences in World War II and the war in Vietnam.

Doctor Banner's Garden: A retired elderly professor and her woman cohort are rejuvenated when three young college students enter their lives. The students, marveling at what these women have accomplished in their revealed pasts, come to seek their counsel. It's a story about aging and the significance of a human life. Doctor Banner's Garden is set in 1947 Chicago.

The five novellas have also been transcribed into full-length stage plays. Thus far, two have been given performance readings, and one is scheduled for a full staging in Maine in 2006.