A collection of New Orleans stories full of dogs, eccentric neighbours, family histories, ageing aristocrats, dancers, roaches and an ocean of marooned personalities.

The New Orleans here is the one that is grubby, funny, theatrical and specific. Ranging in mood from the comic tilt that comes with domestic observation, to more melancholy portraits of people living at the edges. There is something wonderfully unhurried about the collection: characters are permitted to be odd without immediately becoming symbols of anything. Includes black-and-white artwork by Moonyeen McNeilage.

This copy is signed by both Lee Meitzen Grue and illustrator Moonyeen McNeilage on the title page.

Plain View Press, Austin, Texas, 1994. First edition. Paperback. Illustrated throughout in black and white by Moonyeen McNeilage. Signed by both author and illustrator. Light shelf and edge wear to wrappers; internally clean, binding firm. Very good condition