Fire in the Field and Other Stories : Golden Antelope Press : 9781952232565 : 1952232562 : 15 Jun 2021 : In sixteen apparently simple stories, John Young's memorable characters ask (or refuse to ask) what shapes us. Education? Talent? Impulse? Family? Money? Need for approval? Most of the stories are set in small-town Indiana, with a handful coming from New England villages. All are sensitively written, careful, and real. The impulse to cheat (embellish) shows up early in the collection, as an antique dealer teaches himself to craft high-quality fakes. It reaches a fever pitch and crashes in the next tale, when an ambitious minister in an affluent community pays more attention to his neighbor's wife and pumpkins than to the living he's inherited. Young's protagonists range from observant nine-year-olds to hyper-competitive teens, from working class dreamers (and drinkers) to privileged executives defending the compromises they've made. A few face public humiliation; a few others di