"The two 'real lifes' returned to a conversation about their defined careers and nuclear families. Bob tried to participate in the conversation but didn't fit in. They knew he had a fake job and a childless relationship with a four-legged partner. Their thick shells of wellness squeezed him out. His thin shell had cracked a long time ago."

This excerpt from the title chapter in Bill Pagum's Seacoast-based "No Life Story" reveals the essence of the collection of short stories that weaves together the broken pieces of one man's spiritual recovery: his awkward feelings reflect his longing to be part of the "real-life" experience, to be married, with two kids and a respectable career.

A yearning for social acceptance and lasting love appears throughout the book, and this nearly universal desire makes Bob O'Neil's story appealing. Bob is a lost soul searching for validation and help through a maze of psychiatric suggestions and female companionship. Bob goes from doctor to doctor trying to find what he wants to hear. We learn in the first story of the breakdown that led to his dismissal from a decent career at the Shipyard and his regrets over not following the path of some of his college colleagues.

The next few chapters relay Bob's loneliness and his bad luck with women. Too many of the female characters are unavailable or not interested, and Bob becomes accustomed to receiving the "let's just be friends" speech, which he handles with a dry sense of humor. Instead of finding himself in more dead-end relationships, he opts instead for man's best friend, adopting from his mother a Scottish terrier named Teddy.

There's a cute chapter called "Bob and Ted's Adventure" that highlights a walk in the woods that turns into a dog's-eye view of freedom. Then there's the the professional portrait of the two of them that Bob adores. There's also an impending sense of loss when Bob talks about Teddy's illness, an inevitable parting between best friends.

Of all the mishaps and swindles he manages to escape, Bob's triumph is clearly over his alcohol addiction. He uses several flashbacks to illustrate his drinking problem and how it consumed all hope and potential that he had as a young man. He mentions the support he gets from Alcoholics Anonymous and how he finally feels at home there. There's clearly a lesson the author is trying to share here-he even includes an informative appendix of self-help books, therapists, doctors and support groups.

Kudos to a Seacoast author who has given us a fresh look at recovery.