Adam, at long last, was bringing a guest home for dinner. The carefully planned evening, however, began to unravel the moment the family found themselves unexpectedly responsible for eight-year-old Katie, a girl with a considerable affectio…

In the garage freezer, a taxidermy project awaited: a deceased fox, carefully preserved by my father for future mounting. However, this arrangement presented a challenge when my mother required the freezer's contents. Faced with this predic…

Distress gripped the family upon learning of their grandmother's engagement to Mr. Morris, her unpleasant eighty-five-year-old companion.

The anniversary was irrevocably spoiled. A portrait of Mother, rendered by Father, bore an uncanny resemblance to Margaret Thatcher; Jonny, in a fit of youthful impulsiveness, acquired a skull tattoo; and Jim, afflicted with a nocturnal wan…

A piano has arrived in the house, and with it, the most cynical piano tuner imaginable. As he works, the family inadvertently witnesses Aunt Val engaging in a clandestine relationship. The question hangs in the air: what course of action is…

The day of Grandma’s wedding dawned, a day that cast a pall over the entire family. She was to marry Mr. Morris, a man universally considered unpleasant. Despair hung heavy in the air, yet a question lingered: would Grandma truly proceed wi…