James Lee Burke Jesus Out to Sea

Jesus Out to Sea

James Lee Burke

Simon & Schuster, Jun 2007, $14.00

ISBN 1416548564

These eleven tales have been published before, but never together. The collection provides the audience with a deep sense of place as the Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi Gulf plays a vivid role in each entry. The themes are similar with the duality of war (man-made like Vietnam or nature-created like Katrina) and violent atrocities, as combat against a human enemy or Mother Nature brings out the best and worst in humans. The compilation is one of the strongest anthologies of the year so far whether it occurs in "The Village" during the Vietnam war or in the Gulf during Katrina while "Jesus Was Out to Sea" and the government fiddled. In all cases, James Lee Burke provides deep insight into the psyche of the survivor. These superb short stories are thought provoking and enjoyable.

Harriet Klausner