From Powells.com
A consummate selection of books written by Pacific Northwest authors.
Our favorite books of the year.
Staff Pick
The stories in Margaret Malone’s People Like You are so good — they’re only-book-on-a-desert-island good. They are exactly why I read, with their sumptuous minimalism, their gorgeous, particular detail, their delicious deadpan humor, their off-kilter characters. Like the book’s title, every sentence and paragraph is elegantly constructed to mean what it means and to mean more. But the main reason I’d keep this book on that desert island and go without warmth if it were the last piece of available kindling is that underneath all of Malone’s delicately honed skill is a voice so true, so absolutely you and me, bearing witness to the traumas, triumphs, and tragedies of all the tiny moments of regular life. Recommended By Gigi L., Powells.com
Margaret Malone's debut book of short stories will grab you and amuse you and maybe horrify you with its wry and dark look at the small imperfections that make us human. A lovely, clear, engaging voice. Recommended By Doug C., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
In this marvelously funny, unsettling, subtle, and moving collection of stories the characters exist in the thick of everyday experience absent of epiphanies. The people are caught off-guard or cast adrift by personal impulses even while wide awake to their own imperfections. Each voice will win readers over completely and break hearts with each confused and conflicted decision that is made. Every story is beautifully controlled and provocatively alive to its own truth.
Review
"Margaret Malone's stories are fearless and true. People Like You is a sharp debut that leaves the reader eager with want for all the books that follow the sharp debut." Kyle Minor, author, Praying Drunk
Review
“A stunning debut . . . People Like You is full of people like us with all of our sorrows, fears, our wit and damage, and this debut collection deserves many, many readers and high praise!” Lisa Glatt, author, A Girl Becomes a Comma Like That
Review
“There are moments in Margaret Malone’s collection People Like You when it’s hard to breathe . . . whether it’s a dying mother at a slot machine, a drinking pregnant mother stalking sex offenders, or a husband who’s having his prostate checked—every story is flawlessly told . . . Malone is a name that will soon be up there with the best and the brightest.” Tom Spanbauer, author, The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon
Review
"Margaret Malone’s masterfully constructed stories simmer with a dry, dark humor that reveals the truth of the human soul. People Like You makes good on the promise of its title, with characters who are fully formed heads and hearts and bodies struggling with loneliness, love (or lack thereof), and who—and how—to be in the modern world." Liz Prato, author, Baby’s On Fire
Review
"A powerful debut by a writer of immense talent . . . stories that shimmer and burn with beauty and sorrow, generosity and wit . . . I love this book beyond measure.” Cheryl Strayed, author, Wild
Review
"People Like You is wonderful on how much we need each other and let each other down, and how despite that and against all odds we grow into loving one another." Jim Shepard, author, Like You’d Understand, Anyway
Review
"People Like You will blow your mind, steal your heart, and leave your DNA rearranged . . . The biggest mouth-to-mouth resuscitation of storytelling I’ve seen in years.” Lidia Yuknavitch, author, The Small Backs of Children
About the Author
Margaret Malone is the co-host SHARE, an artist and literary gathering, and a Dangerous Writers alumna. Her writing has appeared in publications such as Coal City Review, The Missouri Review, Propeller Quarterly, and Swink Magazine. She lives in Portland, Oregon.