The author of the Anthology Trilogy and the critically acclaimed book and podcast Welcome to the Machine returns with a new collection of fiction, short stories, essays, and non-fiction that explores the momentous events of the first quarter of the new American century. What was it like to be in the military when 9/11 happened? What does it feel like to sit across an interview table from a convicted terrorist and war criminal? How have our once great cities in America fallen into such disrepair? Are the internet and social media actually the source of many of our problems rather than a solution? Can renewal and healing be found much easier by getting away from stifling cities and crowds? Can we ever truly go back to that town we once loved? Do we actually grow and learn more from loss than winning? Is America at a social and existential crossroads? What happens in combat, and what is the truth rather than the glorified version? Why do some people who have achieved things at the highest levels disappear from public life afterward? What is it like to be on alert on a forward operating base half way around the world from your family on Christmas Eve? And recent studies show that of the 3.3 million military veterans who served in the post-9/11 wars, 1.15 million (35 percent) suffer from the insidious affliction of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The cost of this service to our nation and the bill that must be paid is already coming due. What are we as a society going to do to take care of the veterans who fought these wars? From 9-11 to the wars fought in its aftermath and the heavy costs to our veterans, to the outdoors, to sports and the inner thought processes of individual athletes at the top levels, to current events, to the contrasting mythology and actual state of our American cities and small towns, and to many other places in between, Voices in the Wilderness issues a stark and probing series of observations and will resonate with our veterans and anyone concerned about the state of America in 2025. Excerpts from author interview for Amazon: "It seems like a consistent theme in this new book is displacement and the cost of movement during one's professional life. Your military career involved service in Iraq, Asia and other places and constant moves. Did you consciously think about that when writing these stories?" "No. It's never a conscious element, although I agree with your observation. A lot of my work comes from out of my subconscious mind I guess. I moved with my family every two or three years during an almost three decade career. It's hard on a family, especially your kids. You feel like nomads without a home after a while. And I can see where a lot of my stories have as an undercurrent the search for a real home and the feeling of living as a vagabond in perpetual exile." "As someone who spent almost your entire career as a prosecutor and a judge you must have worked on hundreds of cases that gave you a unique insight into the military culture and behavior. You've written a lot in the past about tribalism in the context of sports fandom. Do you think it exists in the military? It's another theme in this book." "Absolutely. I heard a quote from another officer. The Marine Corps is a cult that works and is a gang that is legal. I don't know that I completely agree with his sentiment, but I do think the military branches as a general matter do act in some ways like a cult of sorts and rest a lot of their history on mythology. Indoctrination into the organization and constant emphasis on thinking a certain way. Breaking down the individual in order to strengthen the team, etc. And it is very difficult when you leave to turn all of that off. I have learned that." "Another theme that runs through this work is the notion of isolation and sacrifice. You seem to explore the mental and physical toll of long-term service, including the concept of the 'permanently tuned' mind and body that remain in a state of constant readiness long after your service is done. Is that something you and others have experienced?" "I can't speak for others, although I know for certain I have some close friends who experienced the same things or symptoms, actually. You think it will all just turn off the day you retire, and it doesn't. This is a very disturbing feeling to experience. But yes. You wake up every day feeling like you did every morning when you were on active duty. If you're a mission-oriented person and that drives you. It's very hard to get it to turn off. And the word choice you used - a permanently tuned mind and body - that's exactly what it feels like, but it's a mind and body that are tuned way too tightly. Sometimes it's PTSD and you never knew it." "You have at least one story that is focused on a combat engagement in Asia where a unit is ambushed and has to fight their way out of it to survive. And then you turn to the toll of that experience and confront the issue of post-traumatic