Jenny Offill Books In Order

Last Things

A spare, bewitching debut that explores the delicate line separating science from myth and creativity from madness. Last Things tells the story of Grace Davitt, an eight year old girl who lives with her family in a small lakeside town in Vermont. Her mother, Anna, an ornithologist, once saw a monster in this lake, which she believes may be a dinosaur that has somehow escaped extinction. Each morning, she photographs the dark water, hoping it will reappear. To Grace, the monster is more evidence that the world is full of mysterious things most people will never see. From her boy genius baby sitter, she has learned about invisible black holes from which no one can escape. From her mother, she has heard about the hyena men of Africa who devour their wives in their sleep. From The Encyclopedia of the Unexplained, she has learned about children raised by wolves and men who suddenly burst into flames. It is only Grace’s father, a dedicated rationalist, who teaches her that the world is, in fact, well ordered and reasonable. For him the only truth is science, and, increasingly, he finds himself shut out by Anna as she draws Grace deeper and deeper into a strange world of myth and obsession. Touching on extinction, madness, the breakdown of family, and, intriguingly, the way science can encourage contradictory readings of the world, Last Things will surely be hailed as one of the most assured and lyrical first novels of the year.

17 Things I’m Not Allowed to Do Anymore

I had an idea to staple my brother’s hair to his pillow. I am not allowed to use the stapler anymore.

Here’s a kid full of ideas, all day long. For example, in the morning, gluing her brother’s bunny slippers to the floor sounds like a good plan. But now she’s not allowed to use glue anymore. And what about when she shows Joey Whipple her underpants they’re only underpants, right? Turns out she’s not allowed to do that again, either. And isn’t broccoli the perfect gift for any brother? It’s just too bad her parents don’t think so. But she has the last laugh in this humerous first picture book by an acclaimed novelist of books for adults.

From the Hardcover edition.

The Friend Who Got Away

Losing a friend can be as painful and as agonizing as a divorce or the end of a love affair, yet it is rarely written about or even discussed. The Friend Who Got Away is the first book to address this near universal experience, bringing together the brave, eloquent voices of writers like Francine Prose, Katie Roiphe, Dorothy Allison, Elizabeth Strout, Ann Hood, Diana Abu Jabar, Vivian Gornick, Helen Schulman, and many others. Some write of friends who have drifted away, others of sudden breakups that took them by surprise. Some even celebrate their liberation from unhealthy or destructive relationships. Yet at the heart of each story is the recognition of a loss that will never be forgotten. From stories about friendships that dissolved when one person revealed a hidden self or moved into a different world, to tales of relationships sabotaged by competition, personal ambition, or careless indifference, The Friend Who Got Away casts new light on the meaning and nature of women’s friendships. Katie Roiphe writes with regret about the period in her life when even close friends seemed expendable compared to men and sex. Mary Morris reveals how a loan led to the unraveling of a lifelong friendship. Vivian Gornick explores how intellectual differences eroded the bond between once inseparable companions. And two contributors, once best friends, tell both sides of the story that led to their painful breakup. Written especially for this anthology and touched with humor, sadness, and sometimes anger, these extraordinary pieces simultaneously evoke the uniqueness of each situation and illuminate the universal emotions evoked by the loss of a friend.

Money Changes Everything

The editors of The Friend Who Got Away are back with a new anthology that will do for money what they did for women’s friendships.

Ours is a culture of confession, yet money remains a distinctly taboo subject for most Americans. In this riveting anthology, a host of celebrated writers explore the complicated role money has played in their lives, whether they re hiding from creditors or hiding a trust fund. This collection will touch a nerve with anyone who s ever been afraid to reveal their bank balance.

In these wide ranging personal essays, Daniel Handler, Walter Kirn, Jill McCorkle, Meera Nair, Henry Alford, Susan Choi, and other acclaimed authors write with startling candor about how money has strengthened or undermined their closest relationships. Isabel Rose talks about the trials and tribulations of dating as an heiress. Tony Serra explains what led him to take a forty year vow of poverty. September 11 widow Marian Fontana illuminates the heartbreak and moral complexities of victim compensation. Jonathan Dee reveals the debt that nearly did him in. And in paired essays, Fred Leebron and his wife Katherine Rhett discuss the way fights over money have shaken their marriage to the core again and again.

We talk openly about our romantic disasters and family dramas, our problems at work and our battles with addiction. But when it comes to what is or is not in our wallets, we remain determinedly mum. Until now, that is. Money Changes Everything is the first anthology of its kind an unflinching and on the record collection of essays filled with entertaining and enlightening insights into why we spend, save, and steal.

The pieces in Money Changes Everything range from the comic to the harrowing, yet they all reveal the complex, emotionally charged role money plays in our lives by shattering the wall of silence that has long surrounded this topic.