Author: T.C. Boyle Publisher: Ecco and Harper Collins, New York Pages: 288 Price: $15.90 (Paperback) Still hammering away at the keyboard at age 74, T.C. Boyle still maintains his place as America’s grand poobah of literary fiction, particularly displaying his mastery in the short story genre; and this most recent collection of 13 tightly crafted slices of life intermixed with occasional forays into his beloved magical realism prove that he is still at the top of his game. Possessing the investigative instincts of a homicide detective, Boyle so believably inhabits the psyches of his characters that you either commiserate with them or come to hate them. Take for example, The Shape of a Teardrop, where the narrators are a middle-aged woman and her 31-year-old son who lives at home and has elevated mooching to an art form. Disgusted by his lack of contribution, his refusal to recognize his own child, her one…
