APulitzerPrizeFinalist:Thiscollectionofmovingshortstoriesis“atreasuretroveoflushscenesettinginfarawaytimesandplaces“(AlexisBurling,SanFranciscoChronicle).Onafatefulflight,aballoonistmakesadiscoverythatchangesherlifeforever.AtelegraphoperatorfindsanunexpectedcompanioninthemiddleoftheAmazon.Adoctorisbesetbyseizures,inwhichheispossessedbyasecond,perhapsbetter,versionofhimself.AndinRegencyLondon,abare-knucklefighterpreparestofacehismostfearsomeopponent,whileayoungmotherseeksamiraculouscureforherailingson.Attimesfunnyandirreverent,alwaysmovinganddeeplyurgent,thesestories--amongthemaNationalMagazineAwardandaPushcartPrizewinner--capafifteen-yearproject.FromtheNile’sdepthstothehighestreachesoftheatmosphere,fromvolcano-rackedislandstoanasylumontheoutskirtsofRiodeJaneiro,thesearetalesofecstasy,epiphany,andwhattheNewYorkTimesMagazinecalledthe“struggleforsurvival...handtohand,wordtoword,“by“oneofthefinestprosestylistsinAmericanfiction.“ALibraryJournalBestBookof2020
