Comprised of short fiction spanning the early 1970s to the 21st century - most of which has never been published - this volume reflects the astounding evolution of America's most provocative literary anti-hero. The first section of the book, War Stories, offers six stories enmeshed in the volatile politics of the 70s and 80s; the second section, Tales of the Out & the Gone, reveals Baraka's increasing literary adventurousness, combining an unpredictable language play with a passion for abstraction and psychological exploration.