Dra—
Verse Chorus Press, 2012
Originally published by Sun & Moon Press
A novel both comic and disturbing, soon to be reissued by Verse Chorus Press.
Dra—, drab, indecisive, paranoid, out of money, and powerless, proceeds to a nameless employment agency with the feeling that only a job can give her an identity. At first, Dra— is afraid even to enter the agency because of her irrational fear of a man who works there. Once inside, she must endure a mockingly upbeat lecture on the virtues of holding a job. She is offered a choice between a job at a remote encampment, and one researching and classifying dust.
excerpt:
Winding softly down the stairwell, she glimpsed them a few floors below her, walking arm in arm. Perspiring, afraid to make herself known, Dra— trailed behind, taking care so they would not see her or hear her footfalls. Suddenly she had the distinct impression, as if from an objective, telegraphic source, that her future, though probably to include a good, dependable job, was certain to be brief and senseless.
Following Slim and Marla, she watched as they turned into a hallway then leaned toward one another in an ugly display of public affection. She raced ahead, hard prickles of anger on her scalp, not wanting to lose them, still hearing, almost in her bones, the vibrations of the indoor airplanes several floors above.