A short-story collection from the acclaimed author of * The Great BelieversNamed a must-read by the* Chicago Tribune****, O Magazine,** ** BuzzFeed****,** ** The Huffington Post****,** ** Minneapolis Star-Tribune****, and * The L Magazine*Rebecca Makkai's first two novels, The Borrower and The Hu...

A short-story collection from the acclaimed author of * The Great BelieversNamed a must-read by the* Chicago Tribune****, O Magazine,** ** BuzzFeed****,** ** The Huffington Post****,** ** Minneapolis Star-Tribune****, and * The L Magazine*Rebecca Makkai's first two novels, The Borrower and The Hundred-Year House, have established her as one of the freshest and most imaginative voices in fiction. Now, the award-winning writer, whose stories have appeared in four consecutive editions of * The Best American Short Stories,*returns with a highly anticipated collection bearing her signature mix of intelligence, wit, and heart. A reality show producer manipulates two contestants into falling in love, even as her own relationship falls apart. Just after the fall of the Berlin Wall, a young boy has a revelation about his father's past when a renowned Romanian violinist plays a concert in their home. When the prized elephant of a traveling circus keels over dead, the small-town minister tasked with burying its remains comes to question his own faith. In an unnamed country, a composer records the folk songs of two women from a village on the brink of destruction. These transporting, deeply moving stories--some inspired by her own family history--amply demonstrate Makkai's extraordinary range as a storyteller, and confirm her as a master of the short story form."Richly imagined."

--* Chicago Tribune***"Impressive."

--* O,* The Oprah Magazine "Engrossing."

--Minneapolis Star-Tribune"Inventive."

--W Magazine