Collectanea

A Collection of Writings by Allen Shoffner

This book is a collection of shorter books and other writings by the same author. Using a literary term, the book may be called a collectanea, or, using a common term, simply a potpouri of writings. The subjects of the writings are varied and mixed. The reader will find mysteries and unsolved homicides in High Stakes, the story about the dark side of professional gambling. The reader can read in The Money Changers about greed, cheating and fraud in the market place, including some of the sophisticated methods now used by predators to cheat others. The author has included in these stories a mix of satire and humor about some current social and political issues. Various sins are necessarily part of the subject matter of these stories. Sex is not a significant ingredient in the story mix, although it might have flavored or spiced up the other ingredients in the recipe. The author has also included in this collection and shares with readers items of a personal nature, including letters written to his children while they were at school away from home and parables written primarily for children.