Dreams of Distant Lives

Warmth lifts and fills these tales by an accomplished storyteller--they are also infused with humor, a bittersweet sorrow and deep affection for the follies and foibles of people who love. Writing about a sinning minister as in ``A View of Me from Mars''; a war-crazy young soldier in Vietnam in ``Why I Live in Hanoi''; or the football coach/world leader in the futuristic ``The Era of Great Numbers,'' Abbott delivers a wry and respectful vision of human nature unsullied by sentimentality or falseness. Current in content and form--the terrain is the human spirit in the face of loss, most often divorce, with plenty of trailer homes and Piggly Wiggly stores in sight--the stories are neither grim nor discouraging, not even the saddest, ``Once Upon a Time,'' or the nearly bleak coming-of-sexual-age, ``1963.'' The tales are distinguished by rightness of dialogue and permeance of place, usually the dry lands of New Mexico. Abbott ( Strangers in Paradise ) displays fully rounded view of human nature, and again reveals himself as a fine exponent of the short story form. (Apr.)