READ — Ravioli Parachute

FICTION

Rug Man (2023)

Paul Dry Books

Frank “Ace” Renzetti has been installing carpet for over forty years, working the upscale neighborhoods of Philadelphia’s Main Line. At a time when he should be considering retirement, Frank takes on one of the biggest—and strangest—jobs of his career. The house is owned by a volatile and eccentric divorcee, its rooms teeming with weary contractors, many of whom have been on the job for months. A pampered dog regularly sabotages everyone’s work, and the general contractor patrols the site as if it’s the border. Amid this week-long circus, Frank’s body starts to fail him, and when he loses both his helpers to a drug bust, he is left to complete the job by himself on one good leg. Desperate, he poaches a day-laborer from his competitor and finds that the young, paperless El Salvadoran has a way with carpet and just might be the future of the trade. As the physical challenges of the job mount, the fate of Frank’s business, and, with that, the fate of his blue-collar genius, become increasingly uncertain. Wry and insightful, Rug Man is a tribute to a bygone era of craftsmen whose work was the source of their greatest suffering but also their greatest pride.

“Saint Cosme” (2019)

Masque & Spectacle

In a reluctant homecoming, Royce Demarco visits his elderly parents at the Jersey Shore. His mother, who has Alzheimer’s, goes missing during his stay, and to find her Royce teams up with his ornery, wine-obsessed father. Their search brings them to Atlantic City’s Ducktown neighborhood, where Royce learns the true extent of his mother’s disease, and what he must do to help her.

“A Path to Citizenship” (2015)

Masque & Spectacle

Edgar Portillo, an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador, rides his bike home from work at an Upper Darby restaurant. As he navigates the shadow-ridden streets, flashing back to the town of his birth, San Miguel, a fellow immigrant attacks him and steals his pay for the week. Against his protests, the police accompany Edgar back to his apartment, but light shines on him when he receives an important piece of mail.

“The World’s Largest Bubble Bath” (2015)

Packingtown Review

Gotlieb is the oldest—and best—diamond cutter on Jewelers’ Row. However, his experience and expertise are no match for the gaudy, commercial-minded Jules Jourado, who opens up shop across the street. Lost business and lost pride send Gotlieb into a prolonged funk, but a sleazy radio promotion at Jourado’s store pushes him over the edge.

“All These Streets Are Hills” (2014)

Masque & Spectacle

While walking to the office one morning, an uptight businessman is confronted by a transient who has just been hit by a car. Initially, the business-man refuses the vagrant’s petitions for help, accusing the man of digging his own grave. But charity eventually wins out, as the businessman opens his heart, his wallet, and his home to one of society’s nameless victims.