Lee Henderson has written some very good stories in The Broken Record Technique (Penguin), a collection of painful tales about families, many of whom live in the suburbs and go to malls. This is narrative territory that may be somewhat over-reported these days, but Henderson is one of its best interpreters, a master of the deadpan who manages always to avoid sinking into ennui. He is also one of a few contemporary writers who know how to use short sentences and short paragraphs without sliding into the sentence-like gabble of newspaper stories. Highly recommended.