The Southern Cross

The sixteen short stories featured in Skip Horack's prize-winning debut collection paint a richly textured vision of the American South. Set in the Gulf Coast over the course of a year torn halfway by the arrival of Hurricane Katrina, these stories, filled with humor, restraint, and verve, follow the lives of an assembly of unforgettable characters. An exonerated ex-con who may not be entirely innocent, a rabbit farmer in mourning, and an earnest young mariner trying to start a new life with his wifeall are characters that populate the spirited cities and drowsy parishes in Horack's marvelous portrait of the South. "A knockout winner" for guest judge Antonya Nelson,The Southern Crossmarks the arrival of a standout new voice.

SKIP HORACK was born and raised in Louisiana, attended Florida State University, and practiced law for five years in Baton Rouge. His work has appeared in Epoch, the Southern Review, Narrative Magazine, and other journals. Horack currently teaches at Stanford University, where he was also a Wallace Stegner Fellow. He lives in San Francisco.