A man is repeatedly abducted by the same aliens. A woman metamorphoses into a giant bird. A man and woman are surgically joined to each other. A man experiences the difficulties of remodeling a haunted house. A woman repeatedly drives her boyfriend to the brink of suicide. A man encounters a prehistoric beast in his backyard. A young couple kidnaps little children to supplement their income. A man searches for his evil twin.

These are the types of situations the characters in Essential Stories routinely find themselves in.

The stories are occasionally silly, often tongue-in-cheek, usually outlandish, and sometimes poignant. Told in a straightforward matter-of-fact style, they show how ordinary people react to extraordinary events.