"Ex-files" are becoming something of a folk institution on the Web, where an ever-increasing number of personal Web sites reveal stories about ex-lovers for the reading enjoyment of Websurfers. In this book, some of today's best new writers give a decidedly literary twist to this phenomenon, providing a multifaceted view of past loves and the way they haunt the present.The contributors include both established talent such as David Foster Wallace, and lesser-known but critically acclaimed newcomers like David Means, Ben Marcus, and Amy Sohn. Their stories range from nostalgic memoirs to humorous tales to dark accounts of violence and obsession. Representing voices both male and female, young and old, gay and straight, they illustrate the infinite variations of misadventures of the heart and their often unexpected consequences.