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Fred Setterberg's most recent book is Under the Dragon: California's New Culture, written with Lonny Shavelson and published by Heyday Books (http://www.underthedragon.com/). He is also the author of The Roads Taken: Travels Through America's Literary Landscapes, winner of the AWP prize in creative nonfiction. His essays and stories have appeared in The Southern Review, The Iowa Review, The Georgia Review, and many others. He is a recipient of a NEA fellowship in creative writing, the William Faulkner-William Wisdom essay prize, and numerous journalism awards. This story is part of a new book-in-progress about the rise and fall of a blue collar suburb.
“What’s that I smell?” demanded my father, cracking open the kitchen door, his face materializing in the jamb, his wide eyes ravenous, lordly, insatiable. Mom glanced up from the countertop, her right hand clenching an enormous blue sponge coated with Ajax. Already the butter yellow tiles were gleaming in tribute to her labors, the hacksaw [...]