"Autumn at the Automat" was also written for an anthology, LB's own In Sunlight or in Shadow, and won an Edgar Allan Poe award as Best Story of the Year. "Gym Rat" has never appeared in print; it was ePublished as part of a Center for Fiction project. While readers have suggested the protagonist might return for further appearances, LB is doubtful. Still, he's been mistaken before. "Resume Speed," the title novella, was published in hardcover (by the stellar Subterranean Press) and as a Kindle Single (by the author). Subterranean's edition is out of print and hard to come by, and the story now appears in paperback for the first time. While it was written only a couple of years ago, it has its roots in a story the author overheard perhaps 40 years ago. All of the circumstances of its origin, and a good deal more about each of these stories, may be found in LB's foreword. But, if you don't care, you can just skip it and go straight to the stories themselves.
