From the jungles of Central America to the Great State of Texas, Short Stories is a vivid collection shaped by the pursuit of freedom, the weight of memory, and the enduring allure of the American Dream. With the eye of an artist and the soul of an immigrant, John Bernhard brings to life the people and places that left their mark on him, from lost lovers and chance encounters to the strange poetry found in exile.

At the heart of the collection is his first novella, The Woman Who Stayed Behind, a haunting tale of unexpected passion and danger set on the forgotten coast of Guatemala, where a solitary American is drawn into a world of love, myth, and conflict.

Some stories are imagined. Others are lived. All of them carry the pulse of truth. With quiet power and emotional clarity, Bernhard captures what it means to cross borders, both real and unseen, in search of a life fully lived.

A striking debut in short fiction by a storyteller who has seen the American Dream from the inside out.

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