Genius of Hunger

Diane Goodman's first collection of stories, The Genius of Hunger, consists of portraits of 10 different women. Well-to-do ""Phyllis"" organizes elaborate parties to fill a horrible void in her life; ""Joan"" is an overweight woman whose traumatic experience in a gourmet market ends with a strange interaction with a beautiful teenage boy; and ""Shiva"" finds an anorexic waitress named Marcie, abused as a child, wondering why she gets fired from every restaurant job she has. Using food as a common theme, Goodman expertly cuts across class lines to reveal the souls of her memorable characters with subtlety and compassion.