‘In Their Shoes’ by L J Higgins is a collection of short stories that capture disappointment, heartache, misunderstandings, trials and tribulations, as well as a variety of other emotions that come to light easily and kindly through the author’s dedication to making the stories carry a sense of purpose and strength.

Even though the stories sometimes explicitly state the basic age of the main character, each and every one of them could be anyone at all, from teenagers to the elderly. They deal with basic issues of life that plague even the most decent, upstanding individuals. Suicide, depression, weight, drugs, homosexuality, gambling, and dementia are but a sampling of the themes that Higgins has so adeptly found a way of sharing with her readers, through short stories that basically serve as snippets of time, allowing readers to delve into the minds of people who may be dealing with these issues presently.

This is a collection of short stories, after all; however, the shortness of some of the stories may be jarring to some readers who expect to read more about each person’s journey and how they will cope with any issues that may stem from the personal dilemmas portrayed in them. I, however, found the shortness compelling, as it gives readers a sense of truth, since no one can know exactly what is going on in anyone’s mind other than the person himself. We, as outsiders, can only guess at outcomes, as we are not privy to the inner workings of anyone’s mind and how their perception of life will change their outcome for better or worse.

‘In Their Shoes’ allows readers to contemplate life from a variety of angles, even if some of those angles seem foreign and not easily understood. We are all capable of shaping our own lives, and maybe with better understandings of others and what they may be going through, we can help shape the world into a better place as well. We just have to be open to hearing others’ stories, and being empathetic by means of walking “in their shoes.”

You can find ‘In Their Shoes’ by L J Higgins here.