In this lively coming-of-age novel, young Danny Meyer lays bare a landscape of illness and despair but emerges triumphant, with a new awareness of the limitations of security and the lessons of eternity. Danny's bubble-like existence in paradisal Madison is broken when his father, a concert pianist and professor, is stricken with illness and must give up his professorship. The family is forced to move to Milwaukee to live at the brink of poverty while his father gets sicker, his artistic mother struggles as bread-winner, and his brother becomes delusional. Here, Danny finds himself in the uncertain position of having to accept the responsibilities of manhood while still struggling with adolescence. In a world that keeps shifting, Danny befriends the son of a gangster and, through his brushes with that compelling world of crime, finds his way to a new confidence. Realistically portrayed, A Friend of Kissinger captures an authentic sense of place that is one part arty, heartland Main Street and one part shady, small-time gangsterland.

Playing From Memory is a deeply moving, compassionate novel about the power of marriage to survive under stress, a love story that tells of a musician's courageous battle against a degenerative illness and his wife's struggle to face the end of their life together.

Ben Seidler, an intense, passionately committed violist, is at the height of his career as a member of the Casa Bella Quartet, one of the foremost string quartets in the nation. His gifts as a concert artist had always been intuitive, but love did not come so easily. It took determination to win the hand of his wife, Dory, who was reluctant to set aside her ambitions of becoming an artist.

Their marriage is at once complex and ordinary, balancing the rigors of long rehearsal sessions against the daily round of family life with their two sons. Then suddenly the rhythm of their lives is shattered when Ben falls victim to multiple sclerosis. Stubbornly independent, Ben refuses to rely on others until necessity forces him to see that there are things beyond his control. Through a new closeness with his aging father, his older son, and, most importantly, Dory, he learns to accept help and to appreciate human frailty and affection.

As Ben's health declines, Dory is forced to resume her career and compete in a world dominated by men, and to re-examine her feelings and commitment to her husband. As their lives change, so does their marriage, and Ben and Dory forge a new kind of love, a fierce love that sustains them through everything.

Playing From Memory is a rich and touching story, a novel that charts the landscape of despair but ultimately celebrates the triumph of the human heart. David Milofsky has written a powerfulnovel that carries all the weight and authority of lives truly lived. It is as much about loving as about dying, leading us back to our deepest selves.

Thirteen-year-old Danny Meyer's charmed life in Madison comes to an abrupt end when his concert pianist father falls ill and must give up his professorship. The family is forced to move to Milwaukee and live on the edge of poverty as his father's health worsens. Struggling with the change, Danny befriends the son of a gangster. Through brushes with a thrilling world of crime, he soon finds his way to a new confidence. A Friend of Kissinger captures a sentimental and authentic sense of place in a midwestern rust belt city, following a young man learning to make sense of the world around him.