No One Belongs Here More Than You: Stories [Paperback]

“These delightful stories do that essential-but-rare story thing: theysurprise. They skip past the quotidian, the merely real, to the essential, and do so with a spirit of tenderness and wonder that is wholly unique. They are (let me coin a phrase)July-esque, which is to say: infused with wonder at the things of the world.” —George Saunders, author ofTenth of December

Award-winning filmmaker and performing artist Miranda July brings her extraordinary talents to the page in a startling, sexy, and tender collection. In these stories, July gives the most seemingly insignificant moments a sly potency. A benign encounter, a misunderstanding, a shy revelation can reconfigure the world. Her characters engage awkwardly—they are sometimes too remote, sometimes too intimate. With great compassion and generosity, July reveals their idiosyncrasies and the odd logic and longing that govern their lives.No One Belongs Here More Than Youis a stunning debut, the work of a writer with a spectacularly original and compelling voice.No One Belongs Here More Than You
Reading Group Guide

Discussion Questions:
1. Many of the characters in Miranda July's stories are lonely, vulnerable and tentative, yet clearly the intent of the author is not to expose or ridicule them but to make them sympathetic to the reader. Are there characters in these stories who unexpectedly win your heart? Are there some whose behavior you cannot understand?
2. InThe Shared Patio, the narrator explains that telling Vincent Chang it's not your fault was really the only thing I had ever wanted to say to anyone, and be told (pg. 7). What does she mean by this?
3. InThe Swim Team, Maria tells Kelda that resisting putting her face into the bowl of water is the body telling you it doesn't want to die (pg. 16). What is it that divides the three elderly people in this story to sign up for swimming lessons?
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