As winter deepens in snowbound Pollard, Illinois, thirty-something Francis Falbo is holed up in his attic apartment, recovering from a series of traumas. Other than the agoraphobia that continues to hold him hostage, all he has left is his childhood home, the remaining rooms of which he rents to a cast of eccentric tenants. The tight-knit community has already survived a blizzard, but there is more danger in store for the citizens of Pollard before summer arrives.

As winter deepens in snowbound Pollard, Illinois, thirty-something Francis Falbo is holed up in his attic apartment, recovering from a series of traumas. Other than the agoraphobia that continues to hold him hostage, all he has left is his childhood home, the remaining rooms of which he rents to a cast of eccentric tenants. The tight-knit community has already survived a blizzard, but there is more danger in store for the citizens of Pollard before summer arrives.

From a Pulitzer Prize finalist comes a hilarious and heartbreaking novel about a musician climbing back from rock bottom.

As winter deepens in snowbound Pollard, Illinois, thirty-something Francis Falbo is holed up in his attic apartment, recovering from a series of traumas: his mother's death, his beloved wife's desertion, and his once-ascendant rock band's irreconcilable break-up. Francis hasn't shaved in months, hasn't so much as changed out of his bathrobe --- "the uniform of a Life in Default" --- for nine days.

Other than the agoraphobia that continues to hold him hostage, all he has left is his childhood home, whose remaining rooms he rents to a cast of eccentric tenants, including a pair of former circus performers whose daughter has gone missing. The tight-knit community has already survived a blizzard, but there is more danger in store for the citizens of Pollard before summer arrives. Francis is himself caught up in these troubles as he becomes increasingly entangled in the affairs of others, with results that are by turns disastrous, hysterical, and ultimately healing.

Fusing consummate wit with the seriousness attending an adulthood gone awry, Rapp has written an uproarious and affecting novel about what we do and where we go when our lives have crumbled around us. Sharp-edged but tenderhearted, KNOW YOUR BEHOLDER introduces us to one of the most lovably flawed characters in recent fiction, a man at last able to collect the jagged pieces of his dreams and begin anew, in both life and love. Seldom have our foibles and our efforts to persevere in spite of them been laid bare with such heart and hope.

Máirtín Ó Cadhain’s satire, originally published in Irish in 1949, is appearing in English translation for the first time. THE DIRTY DUST has about two dozen characters, all of whom are dead and lying in their respective graves. Written almost entirely in dialogue and set during World War II, this hilariously profane book depicts Irish villagers who can’t stop gossiping and complaining about one another. So much for resting in peace.

Máirtín Ó Cadhain’s satire, originally published in Irish in 1949, is appearing in English translation for the first time. THE DIRTY DUST has about two dozen characters, all of whom are dead and lying in their respective graves. Written almost entirely in dialogue and set during World War II, this hilariously profane book depicts Irish villagers who can’t stop gossiping and complaining about one another. So much for resting in peace.

Máirtín Ó Cadhain’s irresistible and infamous novel, THE DIRTY DUST, is consistently ranked as the most important prose work in modern Irish, yet no translation for English-language readers has ever before been published. Alan Titley’s vigorous new translation, full of the brio and guts of Ó Cadhain’s original, at last brings the pleasures of this great satiric novel to the far wider audience it deserves.
 
In THE DIRTY DUST, all characters lie dead in their graves. This, however, does not impair their banter or their appetite for news of aboveground happenings from the recently arrived. Told entirely in dialogue, Ó Cadhain’s daring novel listens in on the gossip, rumors, backbiting, complaining and obsessing of the local community. In the afterlife, it seems, the same old life goes on beneath the sod. Only nothing can be done about it --- apart from talk. In this merciless yet comical portrayal of a closely bound community, Ó Cadhain remains keenly attuned to the absurdity of human behavior, the lilt of Irish gab, and the nasty, deceptive magic of human connection.

Malin has always been different, and when her father dies, leaving her alone, her choice is clear: stay and remain an outsider forever, or leave in search of the mythical inheritance she is certain awaits her. Apprenticed to a series of strange and wonderful characters, Malin embarks on a grueling journey that crosses oceans and continents --- from the high seas to desert plains --- and leads to a discovery that she never could have expected.

Malin has always been different, and when her father dies, leaving her alone, her choice is clear: stay and remain an outsider forever, or leave in search of the mythical inheritance she is certain awaits her. Apprenticed to a series of strange and wonderful characters, Malin embarks on a grueling journey that crosses oceans and continents --- from the high seas to desert plains --- and leads to a discovery that she never could have expected.

In this fantastical novel, the acclaimed author of LONGBOURN brings us the magical story of a young girl in search of her mother...who just might be a mermaid.

Malin has always been different, and when her father dies, leaving her alone, her choice is clear: stay, and remain an outsider forever, or leave in search of the mythical inheritance she is certain awaits her. Apprenticed to a series of strange and wonderful characters, Malin embarks on a grueling journey that crosses oceans and continents --- from the high seas to desert plains --- and leads to a discovery that she could never have expected.

Beautifully written and hauntingly strange, THE MERMAID'S CHILD is a remarkable piece of storytelling, and an utterly unique work of fantasy from literary star Jo Baker.

Born in the Midwest in the 1930s, Lillian lives, loves and works in Europe in the ’50s and early ’60s. She settles in New York and pursues the great love of her life in the ’60s and ’70s. Now it’s the early ’90s, and she’s taking stock. Throughout her life, walking the unpaved road between traditional and modern choices for women, Lillian grapples with parental disappointment and societal expectations, wins and losses in love, and develops her own brand of wisdom.

Born in the Midwest in the 1930s, Lillian lives, loves and works in Europe in the ’50s and early ’60s. She settles in New York and pursues the great love of her life in the ’60s and ’70s. Now it’s the early ’90s, and she’s taking stock. Throughout her life, walking the unpaved road between traditional and modern choices for women, Lillian grapples with parental disappointment and societal expectations, wins and losses in love, and develops her own brand of wisdom.

Smart, poignant, funny and totally original, LILLIAN ON LIFE is as fresh and surprising as fiction gets.

This is the story of Lillian, a single woman reflecting on her choices and imagining her future. Born in the Midwest in the 1930s; Lillian lives, loves and works in Europe in the '50s and early '60s; she settles in New York and pursues the great love of her life in the '60s and '70s. Now it’s the early '90s, and she’s taking stock. Throughout her life, walking the unpaved road between traditional and modern choices for women, Lillian grapples with parental disappointment and societal expectations, wins and loses in love, and develops her own brand of wisdom. LILLIAN ON LIFE lifts the skin off the beautiful, stylish product of an era to reveal the confused, hot-blooded woman underneath.

After Henry's girlfriend, Val, leaves him and transfers to another school, his grief begins to manifest itself in bizarre and horrifying ways. After weeks of sleepless nights and sick delusions, Henry decides to run away and find Val. Once on the George Washington Bridge, however, a powerful hallucination knocks him out cold. When he awakens, he finds out that he has been kidnapped by two strangers who claim to be future versions of himself.

After Henry's girlfriend, Val, leaves him and transfers to another school, his grief begins to manifest itself in bizarre and horrifying ways. After weeks of sleepless nights and sick delusions, Henry decides to run away and find Val. Once on the George Washington Bridge, however, a powerful hallucination knocks him out cold. When he awakens, he finds out that he has been kidnapped by two strangers who claim to be future versions of himself.

After Henry's girlfriend Val leaves him and transfers to another school, his grief begins to manifest itself in bizarre and horrifying ways. Cause and effect, once so reliable, no longer appear to be related in any recognizable manner. Either he's hallucinating, or the strength of his heartbreak over Val has unhinged reality itself.

After weeks of sleepless nights and sick delusions, Henry decides to run away. If he can only find Val, he thinks, everything will make sense again. So he leaves his mother's home in the suburbs and marches toward the city and the woman who he thinks will save him. Once on the George Washington Bridge, however, a powerful hallucination knocks him out cold. When he awakens, he finds himself kidnapped by two strangers --- one old, one middle-aged --- who claim to be future versions of Henry himself. Val is the love of your life, they tell him. We've lost her, but you don't have to.