Winged Creatures: A Novel

Summary

Winged Creatures is the startling story of six survivors of a gun massacre at a fast-food restaurant along a Michigan highway.

Teenagers Anne and Jimmy watch the gunman indiscriminately murder Anne’s father and others, then himself. Struggling to understand her father’s death, Anne experiences a virulent religious conversion, while Jimmy becomes mute, not speaking at all. Charlie, a barely-wounded teacher, attempts to make his luck work for him at the casino. Carla, the restaurant cashier, loses her ability to take care of herself and her infant son. Ron Abler, a psychologist, tries to help the survivors but gets little response. Dr. Laraby, an ER physician who failed to save two of the victims, turns to his wife as someone to “save.” Driven by secret torments, each struggles to regain trust in the ordinary world.