The Director of Minor Tragedies

Adam Levtov teaches drama at a small college in the tiny town of Hope Falls. He usually gets stuck with directing one of Shakespeare's "minor tragedies," but this year, he is staging Othello, and the pressure is mounting. Unfortunately for Levtov, his students are rebelling; his teenage son is wearing eyeliner; and a hulking man with a Russian accent is stalking him. All the while, Levtov is struggling with his guilt over a lie he has lived for fifteen years; a household roiled by his demented father-in-law; and a wife who may be flirting with one of Levtov's colleagues. Is all this why Adam Levtov feels like a ghost walking through life? The Director of Minor Tragedies takes the reader into a world of tragedy and treachery, wrongdoing and redemption, in which low comedy crouches stealthily behind high art. "In his debut novel, Ronald Pies creates a compelling family drama filled with love, compassion, humor and a keen understanding of the human condition...A pleasure from the opening sentence through the satisfying conclusion, this book left me hoping for a sequel." - Richard Berlin, MD, Author of "How JFK Killed My Father," and "Secret Wounds"