Jennifer Stone

Prerequisites for Sleep Jennifer Stone

The thirteen stories in Prerequisites for Sleep describe the bartering between individuals and their consciences at the end of the day; the deals and concessions one makes to live with oneself and to, hopefully, get a good night?s sleep. The collection hinges on events that create the need for this nightly bartering. In ?Double Exposure,? a gay woman opts for a straight relationship. In ?Stepsister,? even fairytale decisions have real-life repercussions. In ?Fragile Blue & Creamy White,? a elderly woman grapples with her senile husband and the decision to put him in a home. Whether it is the decision itself, the need to make such a decision, the aftermath or the failure to make a decision, the characters will all have sleepless nights. And who among us doesn?t? We recognize these characters in ourselves, our family, friends and co-workers. We recognize these decisions as similar to ones we have either faced or run away from.