“Big Chicken” is a novella about an unusual larger-than-life barnyard chicken as told by Danny Ron Shortt, a Tennessee caricature artist-turned New York art director. In some respects, it's a "story about a story." Danny Ron finds himself telling the story in question to his co-workers in a New York bar. The story—a tale of a chicken—spans a number of years and includes a cast of colorful characters, including rural farmers and urbane New Yorkers. Complete with illustrations, "Big Chicken"...

Chicago-born Clay Maddau is an alcoholic vet who travels the interstates and backroads as a hitchhiker in an effort to come to grips with his wartime nightmares and to somehow move forward with his life and future. A chain of events one autumn Saturday night leaves him stranded in a drunken haze on the banks of the Rubine River, beneath an interstate bridge in South Carolina. Befriended the following morning by Silas, an African American vet (who senses Clay's PTSD), he is invited to share...