National Network for Equitable Library Service

One Day It Happens is an eclectic collection of short stories by Mary Lou Dickinson, which deal in myriad forms with communication or lack thereof in the lives of the characters. One of the universal factors in human existence is the need to connect with one another. When these characters fail to do so, it is the result of fear, of loneliness, of violence, of impending death. Sometimes they succeed in spite of everything to reach a place of insight and understanding, usually in unexpected ways and to their own surprise. The stories in this volume are all relevant to our times, never didactic or earnest, but rather a frank exploration of themes of loss of a partner, aging, sexual and physical violence toward women and children, death, mental instability and loneliness as well as the process of writing.