Ann's stories sing into her ear, first as a whisper, then as an urgent melody. The lyrics take hold in her heart and won't stop playing until she composes the tune. They range from little ditties, to lullabies to blues and ballads, and on some occasions, symphonies.
In The Era of Lanterns and Bells, a lighthouse is haunted by the memory of lighthouse keepers, a train operator is forever changed by a subway suicide, a journalist befriends a homeless virtuoso, an orca trainer believes she's a whale, an aerialist runs away from the circus, and a Golden Gate Bridge jumper saves lives with fortune cookies.
In Stories I Can't Show My Mother, bat girl receives love voodoo from Needle Man, a woman finagles a direct deposit at a sperm bank, a modern-day Lady Godiva triggers a hot police investigation into a cold case, an astronaut plots to kidnap her former lover's girlfriend, an escort's famous client falls for her, and a woman recovering from a breakup has a mile-high quickie with a stranger.
In Afraid of the Rain, a woman's date with a magician redefines magic, an actor becomes his sociopathic role, a young musician plans a senior-living speakeasy, a boy kidnaps a penguin from the zoo, a man risks his marriage for giant pumpkin-growing, a mother's HIV denial causes her to lose the thing she loves most, and a once fearless woman's house detonates in a flood.