The former Poet Laureate of the United States and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet’s only collection of short fiction, now part of the Ecco Art of the Story series.

Mr. and Mrs. Baby gives us Mark Strand at his funniest, most provocative, and most perceptive. In one story, a US President best known for reading Chekhov to his Cabinet and creating the National Museum of Weather resigns, while another story features a man who has been married five times and in love six, with none of those experiences overlapping.

As People writes: “Few writers . . . can manage to make one of man’s favorite pastimes—futile longing—seem to be so hilarious, touching, and ultimately admirable as Strand does.” This slim, masterful, and moving collection is distinguished by a richness and vibrancy of language and an inventiveness of imagination, making it a memorable and lasting contribution from one of our most respected poets.