Synopses & Reviews
A fresh, honest, and darkly funny debut collection about family, friends, and lovers, and the flaws that make us most human. Fearless, candid, and incredibly funny, Lauren Holmes is a newcomer who writes like a master. She tackles eros and intimacy with a deceptively light touch, a keen awareness of how their nervous systems tangle and sometimes short-circuit, and a genius for revealing our most vulnerable, spirited selves.
In Desert Hearts,” a woman takes a job selling sex toys in San Francisco rather than embark on the law career she pursued only for the sake of her father. In Pearl and the Swiss Guy Fall in Love,” a woman realizes she much prefers the company of her pit bulland herselfto the neurotic foreign fling who wont decamp from her apartment. In How Am I Supposed to Talk to You?” a daughter hauls a suitcase of lingerie to Mexico for her flighty, estranged mother to resell there, wondering whether her personal missionto come outis worth the same effort. And in Barbara the Slut,” a young woman with an autistic brother, a Princeton acceptance letter, and a love of sex navigates her high schools toxic, slut-shaming culture with open eyes.
With heart, sass, and pitch-perfect characters, Barbara the Slut is a head-turning debut from a writer with a limitless career before her.
Review
Praise for Lauren Holmes “Its been a long time since Ive read a collection of stories in one sitting—but this is a book I couldnt put down. . . . An outstanding debut, refreshing and exciting, complex and really funny.” —Nathan Englander
“A wonderful debut from a profound and sassy new voice . . . Lauren Holmes is a young writer of great talent, and Barbara the Slut is a book that marks the beginning of a long literary career.” —Colum McCann
Synopsis
Named a Best Book of 2015 by NPR, Bustle, Gawker, Lit Hub, Book Riot, Pure Wow, andPublisher's Weekly
Holmes trains a precise lens on the millennial generation s mixed bag of manners, mores, and machinations In these] beautifully brazen stories, worlds collide in fresh, imaginative ways. Elle
A fresh, honest, and darkly funny debut collection about family, friends, and lovers, and the flaws that make us most human.
Fearless, candid, and incredibly funny, Lauren Holmes is a newcomer who writes like a master. She tackles eros and intimacy with a deceptively light touch, a keen awareness of how their nervous systems tangle and sometimes short-circuit, and a genius for revealing our most vulnerable, spirited selves.
In Desert Hearts, a woman takes a job selling sex toys in San Francisco rather than embark on the law career she pursued only for the sake of her father. In Pearl and the Swiss Guy Fall in Love, a woman realizes she much prefers the company of her pit bull and herself to the neurotic foreign fling who won t decamp from her apartment. In How Am I Supposed to Talk to You? a daughter hauls a suitcase of lingerie to Mexico for her flighty, estranged mother to resell there, wondering whether her personal mission to come out is worth the same effort. And in Barbara the Slut, a young woman with an autistic brother, a Princeton acceptance letter, and a love of sex navigates her high school s toxic, slut-shaming culture with open eyes.
With heart, sass, and pitch-perfect characters, Barbara the Slut is a head-turning debut from a writer with a limitless career before her."
Synopsis
"Holmes trains a precise lens on the millennial generation's mixed bag of manners, mores, and machinations... In these] beautifully brazen stories, worlds collide in fresh, imaginative ways." --Elle
A fresh, honest, and darkly funny debut collection about family, friends, and lovers, and the flaws that make us most human.
Fearless, candid, and incredibly funny, Lauren Holmes is a newcomer who writes like a master. She tackles eros and intimacy with a deceptively light touch, a keen awareness of how their nervous systems tangle and sometimes short-circuit, and a genius for revealing our most vulnerable, spirited selves.
In "Desert Hearts," a woman takes a job selling sex toys in San Francisco rather than embark on the law career she pursued only for the sake of her father. In "Pearl and the Swiss Guy Fall in Love," a woman realizes she much prefers the company of her pit bull--and herself--to the neurotic foreign fling who won't decamp from her apartment. In "How Am I Supposed to Talk to You?" a daughter hauls a suitcase of lingerie to Mexico for her flighty, estranged mother to resell there, wondering whether her personal mission--to come out--is worth the same effort. And in "Barbara the Slut," a young woman with an autistic brother, a Princeton acceptance letter, and a love of sex navigates her high school's toxic, slut-shaming culture with open eyes.
With heart, sass, and pitch-perfect characters, Barbara the Slut is a head-turning debut from a writer with a limitless career before her.
About the Author
Lauren Holmes