After a colleague is murdered, insurance worker Kafka gets embroiled in an underground group who are attempting to thwart a secret organization that controls the major events in society.
Melvin, a writer, refuses to acknowledge his old characters at a job interview, prompting these characters to manifest themselves to complain.
Humiliated and down on his luck, a superintendent turns his life around when he decides to write a book.
A commanding officer defends three scapegoats on trial for a failed offensive that occurred within the French Army in 1916.
Near a gray and unnamed city is the Zone, a place guarded by barbed wire and soldiers, and where the normal laws of physics are victim to frequent anomalies. A stalker guides two men into the Zone, specifically to an area in which deep-seated desires are granted.
The story of the battle of Iwo Jima between the United States and Imperial Japan during World War II, as told from the perspective of the Japanese who fought it.
George, host of a television show focusing on literature, receives videos shot on the sly that feature his family, along with disturbing drawings that are difficult to interpret. He has no idea who has made and sent him the videos. Progressively, the contents of the videos become more personal, indicating that the sender has known George for a long time.
The staff of a Korean War field hospital use humor and hijinks to keep their sanity in the face of the horror of war.
Following the lackluster launch of her debut novel, 35-year-old writer Kate Conklin receives an invitation from her former professor and old crush to speak at her alma mater. With her book tour canceled and her ego deflated, Kate decides to take the trip, wondering if it might give her the morale boost she sorely needs. Instead, she falls into a comical regression—from misadventures with eccentric twenty-year-olds, to feelings of jealousy toward her former professor’s new favorite student. Striking the balance between bittersweet and hilarious, Kate takes a journey through her past to reevaluate her future.
The lives of Ted and Marion Cole are thrown into disarray when their two adolescent sons die in a car wreck. Marion withdraws from Ted and Ruth, the couple's daughter. Ted, a well-known writer, hires as his assistant a student named Eddie, who looks oddly similar to one of the Coles' dead sons. The couple separate, and Marion begins an affair with Eddie, while Ted has a dalliance with his neighbor Evelyn.
In a country whose people have just been successfully persuaded of their superiority and the justification for military expansion by the fiery speeches of a dictator, the bacillus of a highly destructive form of leprosy has spread. It is called morbus Tshengi, or popularly „white disease“. The only one who has developed an effective cure for it is a physician of the poor named Galén. But he refuses to reveal the secret of his cure as long as the powerful destroy human lives through wars.
Liam, an aspiring and ambitious young writer, eagerly accepts a tutoring position at the family estate of his idol, renowned author J.M. Sinclair. But soon, Liam realizes that he is ensnared in a web of family secrets, resentment, and retribution. Sinclair, his wife Hélène, and their son Bertie all guard a dark past, one that threatens Liam’s future as well as their own.
The story of a group of men, an Army Rifle company called C-for-Charlie, who change, suffer, and ultimately make essential discoveries about themselves during the fierce World War II battle of Guadalcanal. It follows their journey, from the surprise of an unopposed landing, through the bloody and exhausting battles that follow, to the ultimate departure of those who survived.
A sister and brother face the realities of familial responsibility as they begin to care for their ailing father.
Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, Ron Kovic becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country he fought for.
Between two Thanksgivings, Hannah's husband falls in love with her sister Lee, while her hypochondriac ex-husband rekindles his relationship with her sister Holly.
The story of a young writer who tries to save his personal identity while facing the corrupted environment and temptations of a love affair.
Hit man Cleve approaches writer/cop Dennis about a story for his next book: How Cleve made a living, working for one of the most powerful politicians in the country. To get the story right, they travel around the country to gather statements and evidence, while strong forces use any means they can to keep the story untold.
When young dockworker Jude leaves Liverpool to find his estranged father in the United States, he is swept up by the waves of change that are re-shaping the nation. Jude falls in love with Lucy, who joins the growing anti-war movement. As the body count in Vietnam rises, political tensions at home spiral out of control and the star-crossed lovers find themselves in a psychedelic world gone mad.
Paul, a young idealist trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life, takes a job interviewing people for a marketing research firm. He moves in with aspiring pop singer Madeleine. Paul, however, is disillusioned by the growing commercialism in society, while Madeleine just wants to be successful. The story is told in a series of 15 unrelated vignettes.