Дональд Бартельми: Paradise

Simon, a middle-aged architect separated from his wife, is given the chance to live out a stereotypical male fantasy: freed from the travails of married life, he ends up living with three nubile lingerie models who use him as a sexual object.

Set in the 1980s, there s a further tension between Simon s desire to exploit this stereotypical fantasy and his (as well as the author s) desire to treat the women as human beings, despite the women s claims that Simon can t distinguish between their personalities.

Employing a variety of forms, Barthelme gracefully plays with this setup, creating a story that s not just funny — although it s definitely that — but actually quite melancholy, as Simon knows that the women s departure is inevitable, that this «paradise» will come to an end, and that he ll be left with only an empty house, booze, and regrets about chances not taken.