Amid Chaos

Amid Chaos is a compilation of eight short stories which puts a spin on the positive side of the awkward, compromising, distressing and uncomfortable situations that occur in the lives of eight individuals: Karma, Madison, Becky, Gisela, Caleb, Mary, Arlene and Dillon. In the first story, Karma is confronted by the her internalization of a particular war. But it is the soft touch and the tender voice of another person, that lift her out of that distress. Madison is feature of the second story. Here everything in his life has been turned upside-down: he has lost his family, job and even friends. At the lowest ebb of his tragedy, he finds hope from an unexpected source. The third story is about Becky, who after years of trying to have a healthy relationship with Arnold, despite his indifference towards her, she finally faces the reality of the situation and lets go. Gisela finds herself in a situation in which she has no control - living with a contentious aunt - who always makes sure that she (Gisela) is the recipient of many blames. Fortunately, it is Gisela's wit that enables her dealing with the constant provocations. In the fifth story, Jotham is the main character of an anecdote by Caleb, in which he (Jotham) uses both his intellect, charm and wit to deal with the cold environment of home. Despite the coldness, as the older one of four children, he voluntarily takes on responsibilities, which he has come to realize is not helping him nor his siblings. And as such he takes action to remedy the ills of his conflicts. Unlike the character that Caleb paints Jotham as, Caleb himself chooses avoidance to elude his own conflicts. Mary is forced to leave her city home and return to her 'roots', with her daughter Charlene. In the past, she felt such contempt for her her 'roots' and had sworn that she would never have returned. But it a situation in which she unwittingly falls into, that forces her to rescind on that vow. With a much more smaller space, she and her daughter have to make needed adjustments. Solitude is Arlene's best friend and worst enemy. Although she enjoys the peace of mind that it affords her, unwittingly it has made her aggressive to even a friendly encounter. She is visited by Adam, a former next door neighbour, but avoids him by remaining indoors. However, it is the discovery that she she is really on the inside and his persistence that wins. He may look dumb and nonchalant but Dillon is actually a very smart student. He confronts two enemies - the subject, English Language, and a bully named George - and in the end conquers them both. In essence the book captures the fact that the challenges that we all face can be overcome with time and our own attitude towards the chaos that come our way.

• | Author: Dionne O. A. Barrett
• | Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• | Publication Date: Aug 08, 2017
• | Number of Pages: 184 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback
• | ISBN-10: 197440742X
• | ISBN-13: 9781974407422