Fiction. The collection entitled ISOLDE'S DREAM is anchored by stories of two women in love with two great romantic composers, Richard Wagner and Gustav Mahler. In ISOLDE'S DREAM Mathilde Wesendonck remembers her romance with the composer Richard Wagner when they were living in Zurich and he was composing his masterpiece, Tristan and Isolde, under the patronage of her husband. The tragedy of the opera makes its way into their own lives and author Sudhir Jain imaginatively and beautifully captures the pathos in the lives of Mathilde, Richard and their spouses. Other stories in the collection are humorous anecdotes from the adventurous life of an itinerant traveler told with a sense of self-deprecating humor and unique wit.