Beneath Black Stars: Contemporary Austrian Short Stories

Due to their homeland's ominous political past (and present), editor Martin Chalmers notes that many modern Austrian writers feel ""like migr's in their own country""; hence the stories that make up Beneath Black Stars tend to be as dark as the title suggests. Margit Schreiner takes a swipe at outdated pastoral representations of Austrian culture in ""The Kargeralm Shepherd,"" which details a man's coupling with a sheep. Alfred Kolleritsch's stunning ""A Platonic Meal"" is an indictment of class systems and a study of ""the transformation of desire into appetite and gluttony."" Adventurous readers will be intrigued by such formally innovative pieces as ""A Place for Coincidences,"" Ingeborg Bachman's disjointed, hallucinatory vision of Berlin.