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Future Missionaries of America. By Matthew Vollmer. 224 pages. $24.00

Reviewed by Danielle Dunaway

Why do we decide we must hide how we feel from others? Why can’t we just say the words that race continually as thoughts but are kept tucked behind facades? Do we hide truths to protect others or to protect ourselves from other’s reactions or rejections?

Matthew Vollmer pinpoints human nature in his collection of short stories, entitled “Future Missionaries of America.”

The characters are struggling through their innermost feelings versus their outward expressions of the various losses that they experience. These people cope with a range of emotions, from the guilt a new widower feels when his late wife dies by a man-o-war sting after an argument to the sadness a young woman feels when the reality comes to light that she could lose her male friend and crush to his future plans that do not involve residing in the United States.

One narrative in particular details a suicidal man’s curious proposal to find an executor to carry out his will. To the reader, it seems that he is not close enough to anyone who could carry out his wishes, so he decides to distribute his will to 27 random strangers in order to find a taker. Vollmer’s plot lines will lead you through the peaks and valleys of thought before bringing you to the precipice of a solution. He does not reveal exactly how each person solves their despair; he only hints at the course they will take.

What readers may find among the pages and the common place dialogue are their friends, family and themselves. The raw dialogue brings a real quality to the stories that are told. The reader feels as though they are witnessing their best friend’s life unfold as only the friend would retell their drama.

People are strange, in both how they act and feel. Vollmer walks the reader through the quirky epicenters of emotions where losing is at stake. These stories are not dramatic Broadway productions or Hollywood tales. They are candid camera anecdotes of how we are all actors in our own lives.

Vollmer teaches in the English Department at Virginia Tech, where he also advises graduate teaching assistants in the composition program. He lives in Blacksburg with his wife, Kelly Pender, their son Elijah, and boxer Ruby.