Recommended by Paul Donnelly

Charlene's dilemma is appallingly familiar, but her mechanisms for addressing it are refreshingly original and direct. While there is much that is very funny in this short piece, our laughter has to be rueful as the workplace prejudices and consequences at its core seem to remain intractable.

I came to Skin and Bone after finishing The Arsonists hungry for more by Jacqueline Goldfinger and was not disappointed. Skin and Bone has a different tone, more overtly comic and macabre, with a suspenseful story line and an ending that I did not see coming. Although I do have to say that I would root for two aging cannibals over Walmart any day!

The Arsonists offers vigorous, vital and wholly compelling storytelling, both by the characters and in the central narrative. M. faces the excruciatingly difficult task of letting go and there is real suspense in watching her reluctantly make the choices and take the actions that allow her to finally do so. There were so many moments in which I was shaken in a way that "moved" doesn't quite capture by scenes of harrowing emotional resonance enacted with clarity or described with elegant simplicity.

Mrs. Harrison is an extraordinarily compelling two-hander about the construction and ownership of memory and the impact of race on both life and art. Holly's casual racism and sense of grievance slam hard against Aisha's identity, both the real and constructed parts. The riveting question pulsing under their confrontation is, does one own a story for having experienced it or must one also truly understand it? This is a piece that should be produced widely for its skill as well as for the issues it raises.

Chuck is vivid and sympathetic and his dilemma is rendered poignantly but without self-pity. It's still chilling to see a man have to ask not to be hated in his old age.

I want to grow up to be Phoebe. Seriously. She is very, very funny and trenchantly self-aware. Her authentic responses also paint a withering portrait of her all too recognizable parents. While painful to her, her frustration is a joy to behold.

Wyndham paints a powerful portrait of two women with ferocious, desperate, mutual need who are tragically unable to connect. Both are drawn with painstaking specificity and could, with just a touch more self-awareness, be deliciously comic instead of devastatingly lost.

Chilling. Even with the sense of foreboding, the word "autopsy" comes like a body blow when it's a teacher speaking of a student. A student he has shot. This is a powerful cautionary tale that I fear will be our reality all too soon.

Poignant and regrettably timely, or perhaps in our America timeless. A subtle and effective portrait of a father who only wants to protect his kids and yet is clearly ambivalent about the way he and his wife have chosen to protect them. He is a man facing the burden of only having bad choices.

What a tart and tasty morsel. There's wit in the lines and wit in the reveal and wit in the reversal. It turns out that poor Pru has to be miserable to maintain her friendship with Dennis and Rhoda. And it's a bit chilling that she's willing to go along with their agenda for her.