56. Middle Men: Stories by Jim Gavin. A collection of short stories about young men who are struggling to achieve but find themselves coming up short. That might sound like a depressing premise but Gavin gives each story a little dose of oddity mixed in with the reality of underachieving. The stories take the reader all over California, from San Francisco, Hollywood, Riverside, and on the freeways.
In "Play The Man" a highschooler gets kicked off his basketball team because he's an average player on a team of future greats, which leads to him transferring to a mediocre school with a mediocre team where he can be the star player.
In "Elephant Doors", Adam finally gets a good job in show biz as an assistant on a long-running quiz show with a legendary host. He's been pursuing stand-up for years and getting nowhere, so he's happy to finally have a paycheck, a cool new friend and some tiny status, but he is always taken aback by the famous host's weird conversations.
The title story was what I was hoping for. Gavin was the creator of one of the best shows ever, Lodge 49, and in this story there's a lot of the surreal quality and unique personalities that ended up in the show a few years after this book was published. It's about Matt, who was adrift and depressed after his mom's death until his father pulled strings and got Matt a sales position in the plumbing supply industry. After a year in this job he has no interest in or talent for, Matt meets old-timer Larry, who pulls back the curtain to show Matt the movers and shakers in the toilet racket and explains how deals get done in such a cutthroat trade. ( )

Contents
Play the Man
Bermuda
Elephant Doors
Illuminati
Bewildered Decisions in Times of Mercantile Terror
Middle Men - Part 1: The Luau, Part 2: Costello

I usually don't enjoy short stories and these were a great mix of humor, great writing and social criticism. The first and last stories were by far the very best. ( )

Gavin writes generous stories - only six comprise this (I'm guessing) 50,000 word collection - which you're glad about because of the quality of his prose and the honesty and strength of his characterizations. One of the best collections I've read. ( )

I am almost certain that Del Taco was mentioned in all but one of these stories. Del Taco isn't exactly good food, if you are not familiar with it think Taco Bell. But now I want to eat at Del Taco even if it is sub-par mexican food.

This can mean one of two things.

1. Jim Gavin wrote a great book of short stories that happens to mention Del Taco quite often.

or

2. Jim Gavin works in Del Taco's marketing department and wrote a book of great short stories advertising Del Taco in what could be considered one of the most wonderfully abstruse marketing campaigns in history.

Either way, I am happy to have read these short stories, and know that if and when I eat at Del Taco I will think fondly of this book and not so fondly what I ordered to eat. ( )