Finished reading yet one more literary gem from Frederick Busch last night. HARDWATER COUNTRY: STORIES was his sixth book (not counting his monograph on author John Hawkes), published in 1979.

Busch was a master of the short story form, a skill that served him well throughout his decades-long career, and was much in evidence just last year when Norton published a retrospective wit THE STORIES OF FREDERICK BUSCH, with an introduction by Pulitzer Prize winner, Elizabeth Strout. A few of the stories from HARDWATER COUNTRY are included in that volume. In fact, the editors could have picked any one of these stories, as they are all excellent.

If I were compelled to pick a favorite from this bunch, it would be "The Old Man Is Snoring," presented in an abbreviated but never self-pitying or sentimental format of a daily journal, written by a WWII veteran, retired, widowed and living alone, a stripped-down Spartan life, reduced to watching for the mail, solitary meals and going out for newspapera and cigarettes. Knowing that Frederick Busch's father was a combat veteran, I kept wondering if this story may have been family-inspired. The end result, whatever its source, is profoundly moving, a near-heartbreaking look at the loneliness that often marks the end of life.

As always, Fred Busch left me with much to think about. Wonderful stories. Highly recommended. ( )