The Value of Kindness: Stories

Bache's ( Safe Passage ) first collection of short fiction attempts to tackle an array of thorny relationships: between parents and children, and among spouses, siblings, lovers and friends. A frustrated and confused 80-year-old Esther DuBois decides to tell her daughter, Barbara, a war story ``that will knock your socks off,'' belatedly revealing that Barbara's real parents were Jews who perished in Nazi concentration camps; Andrea is embarrassed by her mother, a hypochondriac, and wishes her dead when she goes into the hospital for surgery; for two high school students, the lure of membership in a sorority proves stronger than their loyalty to a troubled pal; and a roofing accident causes a man to nearly lose his leg and his marriage. In other stories, a singer keeps lovers, friends and relatives at a distance because he is terrified that someone may find out that he is dyslexic and illiterate; a teenager resents her mother's ``adoption'' of Vietnamese refugees; a father watches helplessly as his young son suffers over his divorce; and a mother is dismayed when her teenage son comes into manhood and begins to treat his lovers in a shabby manner. Throughout, Bache crafts competent tales that raise interesting issues, although she ultimately fails to probe these fully. (Aug.)