The Sleep of Birds

These two charged and psychologically intriguing short stories explore a contemporary gothic mode, exploring themes of social order shifts and breakdowns through the lens of a doctor's fascination with a patient and a sexual awakening with tragic consequences.

Format: Pamphlet
Length: 36 pages
Publication date: 28 April 2023
Publisher: UEA Publishing Project

“So it was that a happy historical coincidence came to be: sex came into my life after the fall of the Soviet Empire. I was in my early twenties, and I was living in a small town in the Midwest. I had just graduated from college and was starting to get my life together. I was working at a local hospital, and I was dating a nurse. We were happy together, and we were planning to get married.

But then, one day, everything changed. The Soviet Union fell, and the world was plunged into chaos. I was shocked and terrified, and I didn't know what to do. I was afraid that my life was over, and I was afraid that I would never be able to find love again.

But then, something strange happened. I started to feel attracted to other men. I didn't know why, but I couldn't stop myself. I was drawn to their strength and their confidence, and I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement.

At first, I was ashamed of my feelings. I was afraid that my family and my friends would judge me, and I was afraid that I would never be able to find love again. But then, I realized that I was being silly. I was a grown man, and I was allowed to have my own feelings.

So, I started to explore my sexuality. I started to experiment with different types of men, and I started to find what I was looking for. I found that I was attracted to men who were older than me, who were more experienced, and who were more confident.

But then, something even more strange happened. I started to feel a sense of guilt. I was afraid that I was betraying my girlfriend, and I was afraid that I was hurting her. I didn't know what to do, and I was paralyzed with fear.

But then, something even more strange happened. My girlfriend started to experiment with her sexuality as well. She started to feel attracted to other women, and she didn't know what to do. She was afraid that she was betraying me, and she was afraid that I would never be able to accept her.

We were both in a state of confusion and fear, and we didn't know what to do. We were both afraid that we were losing each other, and we didn't know how to stop it.

But then, something even more strange happened. We started to talk to each other. We started to share our feelings and our fears, and we started to understand each other. We realized that we were both going through a similar experience, and we realized that we were both strong enough to survive it.

We started to experiment with our sexuality together. We started to explore different types of relationships, and we started to find what we were looking for. We found that we were both attracted to men and women, and we found that we were able to have fulfilling relationships with both.

We were both happy and fulfilled, and we were both grateful for the experience. We had learned a lot about ourselves, and we had learned a lot about each other. We had learned that we were both capable of love and that we were both capable of being happy.
Two charged and psychologically intriguing short stories that experiment entertainingly within a contemporary gothic mode. In one, a doctor relates his dark fascination with a patient as things fall apart; in the other, a sexual awakening
awakening has tragic and transgressive consequences; both, in lucid prose, speak emblematically of shifts or breakdowns of social orders more broadly.

So it was that a happy historical coincidence came to be: sex came into my life after the fall of the Soviet Empire. I was in my early twenties, and I was living in a small town in the Midwest. I had just graduated from college and was starting to get my life together. I was working at a local hospital, and I was dating a nurse. We were happy together, and we were planning to get married.

But then, one day, everything changed. The Soviet Union fell, and the world was plunged into chaos. I was shocked and terrified, and I didn't know what to do. I was afraid that my life was over, and I was afraid that I would never be able to find love again.

But then, something strange happened. I started to feel attracted to other men. I didn't know why, but I couldn't stop myself. I was drawn to their strength and their confidence, and I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement.

At first, I was ashamed of my feelings. I was afraid that my family and my friends would judge me, and I was afraid that I would never be able to find love again. But then, I realized that I was being silly. I was a grown man, and I was allowed to have my own feelings.

So, I started to explore my sexuality. I started to experiment with different types of men, and I started to find what I was looking for. I found that I was attracted to men who were older than me, who were more experienced, and who were more confident.

But then, something even more strange happened. I started to feel a sense of guilt. I was afraid that I was betraying my girlfriend, and I was afraid that I was hurting her. I didn't know what to do, and I was paralyzed with fear.

But then, something even more strange happened. My girlfriend started to experiment with her sexuality as well. She started to feel attracted to other women, and she didn't know what to do. She was afraid that she was betraying me, and she was afraid that I would never be able to accept her.

We were both in a state of confusion and fear, and we didn't know what to do. We were both afraid that we were losing each other, and we didn't know how to stop it.

But then, something even more strange happened. We started to talk to each other. We started to share our feelings and our fears, and we started to understand each other. We realized that we were both going through a similar experience, and we realized that we were both strong enough to survive it.

We started to experiment with our sexuality together. We started to explore different types of relationships, and we started to find what we were looking for. We found that we were both attracted to men and women, and we found that we were able to have fulfilling relationships with both.

We were both happy and fulfilled, and we were both grateful for the experience. We had learned a lot about ourselves, and we had learned a lot about each other. We had learned that we were both capable of love and that we were both capable of being happy.

In conclusion, the fall of the Soviet Empire was a difficult time for many people, but it was also a time of great change and growth. For me, it was a time of sexual awakening and exploration, and it was a time of great strength and resilience. I learned a lot about myself, and I learned a lot about my girlfriend, and we were able to find love and happiness in each other.

Weight: 68g
Dimension: 209 x 131 x 7 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781913861759