Claire

An airliner breaks up over the Midwest and a casket being shipped cross country falls to earth. Two brothers discover it in a ploughed field and its occupant changes their lives forever. The dead woman, Claire, eventually becomes an exhibit in a carnival because for some unknown reason her body refuses to decompose. She also transforms the lives of a disintegrating family of three transplanted from back east. This story is by turns serious, humorous, tragic, and magical.

Jim Meirose was born in central New Jersey and has been writing and publishing since 1979. His work has appeared in many literary magazines and journals and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. One of his short stories was honored in the 1997 O. Henry Awards Anthology and a collection of his stories has been published. He lives in Somerville, New Jersey with his wife Mary Beth and her dog and his cat.