Postal (Bkpk, Abridged)

Lowe's debut novel takes off from the term ""going postal,"" which has become synonymous with violent public massacres committed by angry gun-toting civil servants. Calvin Beach, a mail sorter working in Arizona, is a troubled Vietnam veteran. He's diabetic, overweight, impotent and wears sunglasses indoors because he's sensitive to light. At work, he's a loner with few friends. At home, he likes to write letters to his dead parents, explaining his twisted reality. Mostly, he's angry--at unwed welfare mothers, immigrants, retirees, anyone receiving government benefits. His response is to build mail bombs. Soon, he's pitted against two brave postal inspectors, Victor Kazy, an idealistic ex-schoolteacher, and Maria Castillo, a seasoned pro. When they pick up Calvin's trail, he kidnaps Maria. Only Victor can save her. The reading is performed by the renowned Muller, one of spoken audio's true pros. He's able to affect the psychotic creeping paranoia behind Calvin's reasoning sympathetically, bringing a poignancy to this otherwise nasty fantasy. Based on the 1996 Write Way book, Going Postal. (Sept.)