Empty Pockets

Praise for Dale Herd: "A world takes place here with extraordinary economy: articulate, fragile, heartfelt."—Robert Creeley "Dale Herd's writing has affected the way I look at the world, as well as opening me up to one more possibility of how to transform the world into words, and his books certainly deserve a place on the highest shelf."—American Book Review From high school love notes to a drug runner's day; from a boy's first fistfight to the unexpected aftermath of a woman's first experience of marijuana, Dale Herd's stories travel the backroads, sending postcards of life as it is lived.

Rookie Reader, Level C.

Battling for her life, a woman faces homelessness during a time of gang wars and riots. In the midnight hour of her life, she finds a strength beyond her own to turn her hopeless case into a case for hope. Chari, feeling let down and pushed aside by family, finds refuge with Joey, a man harboring a shadowy past. Together they journey to the West Coast, pursuing their dreams for a better life. When the city erupts in violent riots and gang wars, Chari’s job vanishes. The same week, Joey ends up in the emergency room. With nowhere to go, Chari sleeps on the emergency room floor. Somehow Joey ends up in the morgue. The attendant there panics when the body bag he was lifting begins to move. Though Joey survives, their joyful reunion doesn’t last long. In a city rife with tension, Chari faces the lowest of lows, until something greater leads this hopeless woman to a new life.

The star of ABC's "Shark Tank" demonstrates how starting a business on a shoestring can provide significant competitive advantages for entrepreneurs by forcing them to think creatively, use resources efficiently, and connect more authentically with customers. --Publisher's description.