Showing results by narrator "David Drayer" in All Categories

The narrator of A Noble Story is a man whose dreams have faded and who zombie-walks through meaningless work days, drinks himself to sleep each night, and keeps company with the ghosts of lovers past. One day, a dancing pickle twirling a sign on a street corner captures the narrator’s attention. The pickle is giving it all he’s got, caught up in a rhythm all his own. He is so sincere and dedicated in his efforts, he doesn’t look as ridiculous as he should. In fact, he seems somehow dignified. Even noble.

Welcome to Cherry Run, Pennsylvania, the epitome of a “blink and you’ll miss it” American town, where the jobs are dead-end, the ultimate dream is hitting the lottery, and the only apparent escape is drinking at the Ruffled Grouse. In story-like chapters, Strip Cuts spans a seven-year period, beginning with and centering around Seth Hardy, a young man struggling to come into his own despite a dreaded nickname and the low expectations of those around him.

Is it better to be talented or lucky? Have you ever experienced a synchronicity? What are the things you will never regret doing? In this collection of blog posts and newspaper columns written during his time back in western Pennsylvania and while traveling around the country, novelist David Drayer explores these insightful questions and many more. You are invited to join him on open-ended motorcycle trips to peculiar small towns, late evening hikes through the woods, visits with ghosts from the past, and philosophical conversations from neighborhood bars.

Andrew - a psychotherapist who has made a career out of helping people in crisis - is suddenly unable to stop the unraveling of his own life. A reoccurring nightmare is making it impossible for him to sleep, and he has gone from a social drinker to a man who regularly blacks out and does things he doesn’t remember doing. A man whose drinking has cost him the woman he loves.