Success: Stories

Success: Stories is the 2008 winner of the Washington Writers' Publishing House fiction prize. These stories probe the lives of people caught in an increasingly intertwined world, close to home and abroad. Exploring a human calculus of love, betrayal, and fantasy, this moving collection makes those dramas vivid.

"Set in locales as disparate as Bangkok, a Maryland racetrack, and a Moroccan village, these 14 lively tales by journalist Taylor (Ginseng) uncover gentle irony in the commonly held notion of a successful life. A son keen on pleasing his mother shows better skills at picking a winning horse than his ailing father in 'Pelagro.' A young student studying in Scotland in 'May Day' rudely learns that because of his timidity (or is it honor?) he has lost the girl of his dreams to his more assertive best friend, while in 'Counterfeit,' Alexa and Howard's vacation-of-a-lifetime in Nepal turns disastrous when Alexa gets sick and Howard realizes he would rather not go back to life as a safety officer for a nuclear power plant. 'Saigon Haircut' proves a hilarious story about a laid-off flower-shop worker who finds that a different haircut motivates him in strange ways. Taylor's characters valiantly make a go of it, yet discover that effort often isn't good enough." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

"A powerful, diverse collection. What makes it memorable are the vivid prose and subtle insights into characters struggling to make sense of or break free from the customs that shape our lives." Brendan Short, author of Dream City

"A book of fine stories." Richard Bausch, author of Thanksgiving Night

"Like all the best stories, the tales in Success challenge our assumptions and make us look again at what we thought we knew." Kate Blackwell, author of You Won't Remember This

"Gritty dialogue, lean prose, layered plotting, and an eye for the perfect detail make these stories a satisfying and engaging read." Susan Muaddi Darraj, author of The Inheritance of Exile

"David Taylor has the amazing ability to put you there....With precise, pellucid language and almost invisible craft, he lets you see and hear and understand what matters. Success: Stories rolls right by Success on the way to Major Achievement." David Bradley, author of The Chaneysville Incident, PEN/Faulkner Award winner

David Taylor's work has appeared in The Village Voice, The Washington Post, Smithsonian, Outside, Prairie Schooner, and other publications. He has written documentaries for PBS, National Geographic, and the Discovery Channel, and is the author of the award-winning nonfiction book, Ginseng, the Divine Root.