"The aspirations that govern our lives are formed within the demands of others, and they are reflected in the face that we present to the outside world. But there are undertones within us, couched in a subtly different face, that express more obscure needs that are our very own.

     "These undertones speak to us alone and return to haunt us when ignored."

Undertones
A Collection of Short Stories

By Philip E. Duffy

ISBN 0-9629651-1-1
xii, 148 pages
$10.95

Excerpt
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Dr Duffy welcomes contact with readers. He can be reached via  e-mail: pnduffy@optonline.net

Insightful Stories Of Discovery

     In his second collection of short stories, Undertones, Philip Duffy continues his exploration of the subtle conflects and epiphanies that can unexpectedly alter the course of people's lives. A master storyteller, Duffy again tantalizes the reader with his keen, often wry insights into human nature.

     If you find a part of yourself in these stories of human experience, it is because the circumstances and emotions of life that they depict are universal.

Excerpt

from "The Chaperone"

     "For months the Davenports had been struggling with a personal dilemma - a dilemma that proved to be as difficult for them as it would have been for people of lesser means. Somehow the millions of dollars that had provided for their estate and possessions were of no use when they were confronted by their eighteen-year-old daughter, Alice. That was, for Mr. Davenport, the most aggravating aspect of the whole impasse, since he resolved most problems by virtue of the control generated by money and power. But Alice, who had grown up with all the trappings of wealth, took all that for granted and was unimpressed by her parents' social position. Indeed, Alice had herself inherited or acquired the mannerisms which come from a powerful family presence, and she mixed them with her cute demeanor, a deadly combination."