Publisher's Synopsis
Opal Pratt shuns confrontation like a yard dog shuns a skunk. You'll see her in 1950s rural Mississippi as a plain, reclusive spinster. She's not afraid of people. She just avoids them. Yet, when push comes to the inevitable shove, she comes through - though perhaps reluctantly - for those she loves. In this collection, you'll also meet the stripper, the pregnant teenager, the immigrant Baptist preacher, Opal's only suitor, the county sheriff and his nearly out-of-control deputy, the blind shopkeeper, and Opal's young friend, Billy. Step into Opal's world where you will both cry for her and cheer her.
A Pushcart Prize nominee, Thomas-Plunk was also recognized by NPR when her entry was designated a "favorite" in their Three-Minute Fiction contest. Her story, "Cassie's Chair," was recently a ? nalist in the Nivalis 2016 short ? ction competition. Another of her stories, previously published online by Steel Toe Review, was selected for the journal's annual print edition. More than a dozen of Thomas-Plunk's short stories and poetry have appeared in Deep South Magazine, Belle Reve Literary Journal, The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature, Steel Toe Review and China Grove Magazine.
Thomas-Punk was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, the cultural, commercial and social head of the Mississippi Delta. She and her husband now reside in north Mississippi.
