Stirred by a series of found photographs, critically acclaimed author Cary Fagan brilliantly imagines the lost stories behind them in this dazzling story collection. Many years ago the photographs in this book became separated from their original owners, faces unrecognized, settings a mystery. They floated through this world, as if on a sorrowful wind… I have given them stories to replace the ones they have lost. So begins the bewitching new collection from acclaimed author Cary Fagan, and a journey into a world that is both achingly familiar and wonderfully strange. A man hangs onto a runaway horse. A woman paints in the nude. A child sparks a revolution. These stories, each inspired by a found photograph, are by turns realistic and surreal, bloody and tender, delightful and appalling. Here are stories that playfully vary in technique and form: monologues, dialogues, interviews, letters, transcripts, tall tales, and capsule histories form a single portrait, belonging — in the words of the author — “to one history, found in an album that might belong to any of us.� Fagan paints a portrait of re-imagined lives that is comic and tragic, profound and unforgettable. The beauty, humour, and the horror of days gone by haunt these pages and resonate in the world we find ourselves in today.

King Mouse finds his authority in question when his subjects find crowns of their own... A mouse comes upon a tiny crown in the grass. The mouse puts the crown on his head, and when a bear walks by and asks if he's king, the mouse responds "Yes." The tiny monarch settles into his new role very comfortably ... until, that is, a snake comes upon a crown and claims she is queen. The mouse is not amused! Especially when, one by one, the other animals find crowns and claim they are kings, too. But when the bear can't find a crown, King Mouse make a most surprising decision... A sweet, thoughtful, funny tale of friendship, sharing and play.

How would you feel if your dad were a clown? The boy in this story never wants to go to his friends' birthday parties, because Happy the Clown is always there. And Happy is ... his dad. He wishes his dad had a regular job, like all the other kids' parents. He didn't mind his dad being a clown when he was a little kid, but now it's just embarrassing. And even worse, since business is slow, his dad is putting a sign on the front lawn advertising his clown services! But one night at dinner Dad announces that he's going back to his old job of being a lawyer. "You were a lawyer?" the boy asks, incredulous. Now his dad wears a suit and tie to work, the family can buy a new car, his mom can take piano lessons, and he can have a skateboard and cellphone. But something feels different. The boy wonders if his dad misses being a clown. Or is he the one who misses Happy? With bittersweet humor, Cary Fagan brings us a story about a boy's growing consciousness and a father's realization that he can be himself. Key Text Features speech bubbles Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions).

Nominee for the 2012 Silver Birch Express Award in the Ontario Library Association's Forest of Reading Program. Jeremiah Birnbaum is stinking rich. He lives in a house with nine bathrooms, a games room, an exercise room, an indoor pool, a hot tub, a movie theater, a bowling alley and a tennis court. His parents, a former hotdog vendor and window cleaner who made it big in dental floss, make sure Jeremiah goes to the very best private school, and that he takes lessons in all the things he will need to know how to do as an accomplished and impressive young man: etiquette lessons, ballroom dancing, watercolor painting. And, of course, classical piano. Jeremiah complies, because he wants to please his parents. But one day, by chance, he hears the captivating strains of a different kind of music -- the strums, plucks and rhythms of a banjo. It is music that stirs something in Jeremiah's dutiful little soul, and he is suddenly obsessed. And when his parents forbid him to play one, he decides to learn anyway -- even if he has to make the instrument himself.

Two lonely souls find each other in this unusual tale of friendship and belonging from award-winning comic writer Cary Fagan featuring vibrant art by Banafsheh Erfanian. Is there someone out there for everyone? Two lonely souls find each other in this unusual tale of friendship and belonging from award-winning comic writer Cary Fagan. In her North American debut, illustrator Banafsheh Erfanian brings ornate artistry to the cage and birds that inhabit this surprisingly human story. A long-empty birdcage takes a chance and leaves behind its attic home to find a bird to keep. Out in the world, the cage encounters many birds and offers shelter to each of them. One by one, they refuse, explaining why they belong elsewhere. The cage feels lonelier than ever – until the cage in search of a bird finds a bird in search of a cage. Based on an aphorism by Franz Kafka, Fagan’s original story will make readers laugh at its absurdity and ponder its meaning long after they finish reading. Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.3 With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7 Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

In a quaint tourist village, Dorn makes miniature scale models displayed in the local shops. Yet life is far from idyllic; he suffers under the thumb of a rich, philandering younger brother and an unloving, pudding-obsessed father. Nor can he find the courage to admit his love to Ravenna, the tall and ungainly school teacher who was once the village's only Olympics hope. Life takes a strange turn when the government-sponsored "Wild Home Project" begins in the village. Dorn's neighbour now lives with a wolf. Others are in company with rats, minks, otters, and bears. Soon, Dorn receives a mysterious commission, finds a body in a park, and has several run-ins with a former classmate-turned police officer. When fire breaks out, Dorn takes on the unlikely role of hero in the hope of changing the course of his life. A realist novel with the air of a fairy tale, this surprising, funny and thought-provoking story from beloved author Cary Fagan explores the nature of relationships faunal and human, reminds us of the challenges of finding one's place in society... and that living with a wolf is not a very good idea.

King Mouse finds his authority in question when his subjects find crowns of their own... A mouse comes upon a tiny crown in the grass. The mouse puts the crown on his head, and when a bear walks by and asks if he's king, the mouse responds "Yes." The tiny monarch settles into his new role very comfortably ... until, that is, a snake comes upon a crown and claims she is queen. The mouse is not amused! Especially when, one by one, the other animals find crowns and claim they are kings, too. But when the bear can't find a crown, King Mouse make a most surprising decision... A sweet, thoughtful, funny tale of friendship, sharing and play.

Sheila Hersh is spending her early thirties leading a double life. She hangs out at the cool Firenze Bar at night, has a closetful of black clothes, and is even the reluctant star of an underground film. By day she writes ad copy for her father's store, Hersh's House of Mattresses (where she is instructed to use a lot of exclamation points), and manages to keep the rest of the employees - her outspoken, ambitious aunt and her stylish but ineffectual uncle -- on an even keel.
The only thing that really keeps her interest is a mysterious book of poems that belonged to her dead mother. Sheila feels that if she could find out more about the obscure Viennese poet who died at the age of twenty-three in 1938, it might lead her to a greater understanding of her mother - and even of herself.
Sheila travels to Vienna, where the city's ancient streets, aromatic coffee houses, and glorious music work an unexpected magic on her. As this literary mystery unravels, Sheila's familial bonds become more palpable. Surprising discoveries and chance meetings make this a delightful novel, funny, moving, and romantic.