Brandishing the caustic wit that is the hallmark of his four previous books of short fictions, L. D. Brodsky gives "Xmas" an X rating in this latest volume, with his salty-tongued South St. Louis auto-assembly-line "rough," who gets way too far into the Christmas spirit(s). At least deserving of an R rating are some of Brodsky's other outrageous characters, such as the guy who disguises himself as a Persian cat or basset hound to escape the scrutiny of his neighbors; the misguided soul who turns into a UFO; experts in fecal matter and the mortuarial arts; the husband who flies home early to avoid a snowstorm, only to surprise his preoccupied wife; the art forger who's so good he becomes more famous than the masters he copies; and men who mate with bears, whales, and themselves. Drop your quarter into Rated Xmas and view the peepshow that's always playing in Brodsky's mind.