Triangle Ray — John Holman

Triangle Ray is a collection of short stories linked by the character of Ray Fielding, introduced first as a young black man coming of age in the 1980s and infatuated with his schoolmate, Marie. Against the wishes of their families, the two marry just out of high school, but the marriage falls apart within a few years as time makes them strangers to each other.

Twenty years later, Ray is unmarried and still searching for a lasting romance, especially with Alma, whom he meets at the hotel where he works. Through his interactions with Marie, Alma, and others, Ray explores the motives behind the ways we retell our stories, and how we ignore or embrace the future that is already taking shape in the present.

A keen observer of social factors and class disparity, John Holman writes with sharp prose and startling insight, and employs diverse form and point of view to examine issues of race and class within the context of Ray's romantic aspirations.