The GyPSy Line, a Christmas story by Michael Madigan, is one of 11 finalists chosen for this first Gem Street collection. The eclectic, glittering tumble of stories comes from authors in seven countries.

Six weeks at sea. Six days at home. For fourteen years. In post-war 1958, it’s a precarious life cycle for a working father struggling to hold onto his wife and his son and provide for a young family. One missing letter, one loving link in communication, threatens to tear it all apart.