<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>From Appalachia to South Korea and back, this stunning and relentless collection explores themes of home and displacement.<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><b>"There is not a wasted word in these thirteen taut and thrilling stories of grief, exile, and devotion." --Silas House, author of <i>Southernmost</i></b></p> <p><i>A Korean woman in rural Kentucky clings to the love found in her new marriage as the mountain above her washes away. <br>A dutiful daughter struggles to help her father navigate their shared grief--and the sudden release of dangerous, exotic animals.<br>A new father driven by his pride confronts Japanese soldiers in a harrowing raid on his home. <br></i> In his debut collection, Michael Croley takes us from the Appalachian regions of rural Kentucky and Ohio to a village in South Korea in thirteen engaging stories in which characters find themselves, wherever they are, in states of displacement. In these settings, Croley guides his characters to some semblance of home, where they circle each other's pain, struggle to find belonging, and make sense of the mistakes and bad breaks that have brought them there. Croley uses his absorbing prose to uncover his characters' hidden disquiet and to bring us a remarkable and unique collection that expands the scope of modern American literature.<p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br><p><b>WINNER of the 2020 JAMES STILL AWARD FOR WRITING ABOUT THE APPALACHIAN SOUTH</b></p> <p><b>WINNER of the 2020 WEATHERFORD AWARD FOR FICTION</b></p> <p>"Croley's solid debut, set mostly in small-town Appalachia, explores masculinity, heartbreak, and isolation in 13 emotional stories...Readers will relish these melancholy stories of everyday and exceptional tragedies." <b>--<i>Publishers Weekly</i></b></p> <p>"Michael Croley's short story collection <i>Any Other Place</i> finds people in the circumstances they'd do anything to avoid and traces the ties of love, loyalty, and sacrifice that bind them. Croley masters this contradictory tension, turning the phrase 'any other place' into one that's equal parts pride and plea, each informed by a deep intimacy...Whether people turn toward each other, turn inward, or keep their gaze on the horizon, these stories examine how, together and apart, everyone is entangled in a battle between 'I can't lose you' and 'I can't lose myself.' Croley's stories are thrilling in the oldest sense of the word. They pierce, boring a hole straight into Fordyce's singular, multitudinous heart." <b>--<i>Foreword Reviews</i></b></p> <p>"Like the best writers, Michael Croley takes us into the lives of ordinary people who have been thrust into the extraordinary circumstances of everyday life. There is not a wasted word in these thirteen taut and thrilling stories of grief, exile, and devotion. We leave <i>Any Other Place</i> feeling as if we know each of these sharply drawn characters and traveled to their places in the world, all of which Croley presents with startling clarity and complexity. This is one of the most exciting and beautiful story collections to come down the literary pike in a long time and announces a major new talent who infuses every story with emotion that leaves us feeling gut-punched in the best of ways. <i>Any Other Place</i> is a stunner." <b>--Silas House, author of <i>Southernmost</i></b></p> <p>"Michael Croley's <i>ANY OTHER PLACE</i> is a story collection of immense power. Croley masterfully gathers disparate worlds through his sympathy and generous grasp. As the characters approach their truths of home, family, and duty, we witness the gorgeous possibility of what ordinary men and women seek--love, acceptance, and forgiveness." <b>--Min Jin Lee, author of <i>FREE FOOD FOR MILLIONAIRES</i> and <i>PACHINKO</i>, finalist for the National Book Award.</b></p> <p>"Michael Croley shows us the lives most of us inhabit--simple on the surface, with a rich and complicated inner life. His people yearn, fight, and love, make mistakes and gain success, and remain optimistic despite tough circumstances. This book will teach you about humanity and about yourself." <b>--Chris Offutt, author of <i>Country Dark</i></b></p> <p>"Writing with assurance born of bone-deep knowledge and insight, Michael Croley brings us these taut, brilliant, understated stories from the new 'global South'―each one occurring in a charged, liminal space, its characters caught at the crossroads of their lives, between countries, between past and present, between conflicting loyalties or desires. Each perfect ending is a surprise, yet perfectly realized, reverberating in the mind long afterward. <i>Any Other Place</i> is a revelation." <b>--Lee Smith, author of <i>Dimestore: A Writer's Life</i> and <i>The Last Girls</i></b></p> <p>"In these thirteen stunning stories, Michael Croley delves deep into the lives of characters undone by grief and betrayal with crystalline compassion and deft surprise. How do we reckon with the troubled legacies we inherit? How do we square our own stark limitations with our desire to create love? <i>Any Other Place</i> is beautifully unafraid of such vast and thorny questions. This magnificent collection is the kind of fiction that will expand your comprehension of the world, a debut that reads with the precision and punch of a writer already in full command of his powers." <b>--Laura van den Berg, author of <i>The Third Hotel</i></b></p><br><p/><br></br><p><b> About the Author </b></p></br></br><b>Michael Croley</b> was born in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. The recipient of an NEA Fellowship in Literature in 2016, his stories and essays have appeared in <i>Narrative</i>, <i>Catapult</i>, <i>Blackbird</i>, <i>Kenyon Review Online</i>, <i>Virginia Quarterly Review</i>, the <i>Paris Review Daily</i>, and elsewhere. He teaches creative writing at Denison University.
Cheapest price in the interval: 12.99 on October 22, 2021
Most expensive price in the interval: 12.99 on November 8, 2021
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