Twenty Miles West of Branch, Texas and Other Stories

From a desert highway in West Texas to the plains of frontier Kansas to an abandoned mine in New Mexico, from a courtroom to a high school girls' speech contest to a VA mental ward, from the side yard of a suburban house to a youth revival to the halls of an urban high school, K. C. Knouse puts the main characters of the thirteen short stories and novella included in this collection into circumstances that challenge assumptions they have made about themselves, their lives, and the world in which they live: The mother who is estranged from her son. The young woman who has doubts about her relationship with an older man. The widower who struggles to accept the death of his wife. The young man who is fearful of becoming his abusive father. The homesteader who fights to redeem his pride. The aging salesman whose livelihood is threatened by technology. The father who relives his past at the expense of his relationship with his son. The boy who discovers that having money creates as many problems as it solves. The veteran teacher who crosses an emotional boundary in spite of herself. The teenage boy whose relationship with God is complicated by a pretty girl and a misunderstanding. The woman who doubts her decision to put her husband into a VA mental ward. The man whose faith in the justice system is shaken. The high school girl who is self-conscious about a birthmark on her face. The middle-aged insurance adjuster who receives more than he bargained for when he comes to the aid of an attractive woman. K. C. Knouse uses compassion, humor and an eye for detail to bring these characters to life and bind their stories to your heart.