Mary Gaitskill's tales of desire and dislocation in 1980s New York caused a sensation with their frank, caustic portrayals of men and women's inner lives. As her characters have sex, try and fail to connect, play power games and inflict myriad cruelties on each other, she skewers urban life with precision and candour.

'Stubbornly original, with a sort of rhythm and fine moments that flatten you out when you don't expect it, these stories are a pleasure to read' Alice Munro

'An air of Pinteresque menace hangs over these people's social exchanges like black funereal bunting ... Gaitskill writes with such authority, such radar-perfect detail' Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

The bestselling 1988 collection of short stories exploring the inner lives of men and women, ambiguity and unease in relationships, and the cruelty we inflict on one another.

About the Author
Mary Gaitskill is the author of the story collections Bad Behavior, Because They Wanted To (nominated for the PEN/Faulkner Award), and Don't Cry, the novels The Mare, Veronica (nominated for the National Book Award), and Two Girls, Fat and Thin, and a collection of essays, Somebody With A Little Hammer. Her stories and essays have appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's, Artforum, and Granta, among many other journals, as well as in The Best American Short Stories and The O. Henry Prize Stories.

Reviews
Stubbornly original, with a sort of rhythm and fine moments that flatten you out when you don't expect it, these stories are a pleasure to read -- Alice Munro
Pinteresque...Ms. Gaitskill writes with such authority, such radar-perfect detail, that she is able to make even the most extreme situations seem real...[her] reportorial candor, uncompromised by sentimentality or voyeuristic charm...underscores the strength of her debut -- Michiko Kakutani
Razor-sharp brilliance -- D. M. Thomas
Quite honestly changed my life... I cannot believe I was 32 before I discovered it. I just thought it was one of the most amazing things I'd ever read and it now lives on my desk so that I can revisit it any time -- Pandora Sykes * The High Low *
Delicious . . . comedy is balanced by genuine pathos, and Gaitskill is perceptive about how our desires can elude and confound even ourselves . . . Gaitskill masters human dynamics: the nuance of her portrayal of emotion and psychology; the daring of her selection of challenging subjects and people; the quality of her prose, with its occasional flights of gorgeous imagery . . . Her stories portray oddballs and free spirits on the fringes of 80s New York, often embroiled in complex sexual or romantic lives -- Matt Rowland Hill * i, The book I read every New Year *



Book Information
ISBN 9780241383100
Author Mary Gaitskill
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Penguin Classics
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Weight(grams) 168g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 13mm