Dumpsters

Homeless, addicted, and helpless describes different characters who are struggling with hopelessness in Dumpsters. The eighteen short stories in this collection pinpoint a decisive moment in each person's life. The reader is introduced to a world of alcoholics and drug addiction, some who have no decision to change. For example, Pete wakes up in a snowstorm next to a dumpster, a six-pack nearby. He is homeless, as in Faye, who finds herself stuck in a small town with a bottle under her coat. Some commit crimes in order to get drug money, as in A Simple Robbery, gone bad. Some trade their bodies and in The Gift, relinquish a child. A young boy watches in fear as his parents continue to batter each other. The author also visits the challenges and controversies of rehabilitation and counseling. The reader will meet counselors who struggle with their own addictions and temptations, who dislike their work and question their own abilities. Inside a treatment facility the reader will find a clinician burned out and another who becomes sexually involved with a client. A journey to The Basement depicts the secret between a pastor and his congregation, while a therapist learns that one can push a person too far until it's too late. While the author depicts a world that often appears bleak and homeless, the book also reveals a sense of hope and endurance. Dumpsters offers a challenge to both those who struggle with addiction and those who labor in the mental health field to examine their values and strive for a successful and moral life. Unfortunately many of the character on both sides do not.