The first six books in The Little Knife and Other Short Stories are all soft motifs handled with care, that then lead into a deeper story that blends with the main plot. "S Angel" is the first short story and is about a man who is looking for love at his cousin’s wedding, just to realize that his dream romance is outdated. "Ocean Avenue" is about a reunited couple that finds back their love. "A Modern World" is about a pair of friends that must confront the worst things they have done in front of their professor. "Blumenthal on the Air" is about a refugee’s love life, "Smoke" is about a baseball player at the end of his career and "Millionaires" is about a love triangle.
"The Little Knife", which lends its name to the short-story collection as a whole, centers around a little boy called Nathan Shapiro. He was the son of Dr. Shapiro and is ten years old. Nathan’s father was very disappointed in his family, and points out every bad decision his son makes, which makes Nathan sad. Dr. Shapiro also had trouble in his marriage with Nathan’s mother. They fight a lot, as Dr. Shapiro asks her to do unlawful and dishonest things, which she denies doing.
Nathan walks alone on the beach, making weird footprints. Then his parents join him, and he tricks them into believing that a creature had been on the beach, when it really was his footprints. The family decides to leave the beach because his mother isn’t feeling well. Ricky blames Nathan. Nathan goes back to pack and puts the little knife into his box. This was the last summer his parents were together, and Nathan feels responsible.
