Disasters in the First World [Paperback]

Olivia Clares delightfully strange and tender debut collection traces the impact of larger-than-life forces on everyday people. From siblings whose relationship is as fragile as glass, to a woman grappling with both an emotional and physical drought, to a superstitious spouse fearful of misfortune,Disasters in the First Worldexplores the real and the imagined, environmental and man-made calamities, and the human need to comprehend the unknown.

In Pittsburgh in Copenhagen, a man and a woman confront infidelity and estrangement as they share one last night together. P?tur tells the tale of a son who takes his mother on an Icelandic vacation only to be stranded there by a volcanic eruption. Rusalkas Long Legs follows a young girls treacherously long walk through the woods with her unpredictable mother. And in The Visigoths, an older sister finally breaks through to her idiosyncratic brother.

With precision and grace, the thirteen stories in this collection capture the fragility of troubled lives caught in disrupted turbulence, moments of connectionno matter how fleeting. Through these intimate, profoundly moving worlds, Clares voice rises as a distinctive new American storyteller.

Praise for DISASTERS IN THE FIRST WORLD

These insightful stories . . . flout convention and work in mysterious ways. Two in particularP?tur and The Visigothswill probably be anthologized and taught and cherished for years to come. Theyre so well crafted . . . [they] flicker with moments of rare insight and nuance . . . makes me want to pick up whatever Clare publishes next. Andrew Ervin,New York Times Book Review

Lyrical and elegiac . . . Clares writing sparkles with unexpected word . . . Her stories unfold in wonderfully astonishing turns . . . Tender yet occasionally biting,Disasters in the First Worldekes narrative poetry out of tragedy . . . Clare writes compassionately and unflinchinglylƒ˝