The Burning Ground

In these eight stories, an English writer focuses his gaze on America's West Coast, moving from fractured lives in remote, sun-scorched towns to the charged hum of Venice Beach. A man visits his long-distance lover in Los Angeles; the foreman of a desert building project embarks on a journey into California's underworld; an artist finds peace in exile after the disintegration of an affair; and itinerant Brits discuss love and acting in downtown LA. Written with an outsider's keen eye, this collection paints an intimate portrait of diverse lives, in a work of remarkable beauty and poignancy.