Best Friends

<p>Three novellas by John Fraser with the related theme of friendship:</p><p>The two cities in <em><strong>Cities on the Plain on a Hil</strong>l</em> are the new Jerusalem on the hill Sodom and Gomorrah on the plain – destinations for Ahmed and Nico two ex-pats and best friends. Ahmed an ex-dancer interested in the law and justice becomes an amateur judge and Nico ex-soldier poetaster small-time dealer comes to reside in a city run by drug-cartels.</p><p>What does it mean to leave something of oneself? The protagonist of <em><strong>Fame</strong></em> is engaged to follow the past life of an ancient who hopes to achieve a kind of immortality. The trip involves re-running many adventures of the ancient's women sentimental tough. He is fixated with goldsmithing a re-visiting of the Sarmatians an archaic steppe people. There is a failed robbery in Ukraine periods of virtual bondage prison counselling. The search for a life which is one's own leads to an encounter with survivors of catastrophe and ultimately to a vital encounter...</p><p>Seeking a clean start should be easy. But in <em><strong>Cleansing</strong></em> there are mysteries situations not resolved friends who lead astray and who you lead astray. Art should be able to present a clean vision but does not. Street cleaning never starts and never ends. Besides you witness what you ought not see. Living poor joining the military – both choices imply different kinds of cleanliness but ultimately the prospect seems that of wild horses tattoed on human skin.</p>