Choose Me

In this latest collection of short fiction, Evelyn Lau's elegant prose explores the complexity of human relationships. Though they long to be chosen, the women in Lau's stories are drawn to men they can't have, men whose allure fades the more available they become. The wives and lovers of those men confront each other with a discordant mix of admiration and jealousy.

In the novella, "Choose Me," Becky's attraction to Warner is equalled in intensity by her fascination with Annabelle, his aging but still glamorous wife. Zoe, the young poet of "Family," retreats from Douglas when she realizes that their involvement will never rival the "grand passion" he once shared with his wife. In "Suburbia," Belinda is increasingly disgusted by every aspect of her lover, as more and more she comes to see him through his wife's disappointed gaze.

With a precise eye and a deft touch, Lau explores the ambiguous motives that propel her characters into emotional and sexual entanglements. Lau's use of language is controlled, and her images sensuously described.