I Am an Executioner

Love Stories

By: Rajesh Parameswaran

Narrated by: Lina Patel, Neil Shah

Audie Award Nominee, Short Stories/Collections, 2013

In the unforgettable opener, "The Infamous Bengal Ming", a misunderstood tiger's affection for his keeper goes horribly awry. In "Demons", a woman tries to celebrate Thanksgiving after the sudden death of her husband, even though his corpse is still sprawled on their living room floor. In "The Strange Career of Dr. Raju Gopalarajan", an ex-CompUSA employee sets up a medical practice in a suburban strip mall armed only with textbooks from the local library and fake business cards.

The heroes - and antiheroes - of this collection include a railroad manager in a turn-of-the-century Indian village, the newlywed executioner of the title, and an elephant writing her autobiography - the creations of a riotous, singular imagination that promises to dazzle the universe of American fiction.

©2012 Ramona Ausubel (P)2012 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Critic reviews

"The characters in this first collection, including a frustrated Bengal tiger and a woman gamely managing Thanksgiving dinner with her husband sprawled dead on the floor, suggest an offbeat temperament at work. The venues where these stories have appeared - e.g., McSweeney's, Granta, and Zoetrope - suggest talent at work as well. Great expectations!" ( Library Journal)