"The stories in The Righteous Road show off Ryan Shemaker's impressive range, from the dramatic to the satiric-he is a writer who can make you feel deeply in one story and laugh aloud in the next, a rare gift." -T.C. Boyle, author of The Tortilla Curtain and Blue Skies"Family, faith, loss, love and hope-these are the essential elements of Ryan Shoemaker's beautiful stories. A troubled, reckless father, Kurt Cobain, Adam and Eve-Shoemaker weaves gritty reality with the myths of our most ancient stories illuminated by a contemporary imagination that is sure-footed, honest, and unflinching-all while infusing his sentences with the kind of understated humor that you have to earn by living with an open, compassionate heart. Bravo." -Jason Brown, author of Why the Devil Chose New England for His Work: Stories and Character Witness: A Memoir"Shoemaker is one of my favorite short story writers, and this book exemplifies all that makes that statement true. He hooked me with the interplay of LDS culture, our scriptural underpinnings, and our foibles and peculiarities, handled with nuance, fantastic writing, and style. I relished every single story. There was not a miss in the entire collection. Some of the stories left me laughing out loud. Another left me pondering for days the way we deceive ourselves about our own motivations and actions. But all of them captured me with their excellence and fun. Don't miss this collection. It is a treasure trove of meaning and delight." -Steven L. Peck, author of Heike's Void and A Short Stay in Hell