University of Pittsburgh Press, 2024 Paper: 978-0-8229-6734-7 | Cloth: 978-0-8229-4799-8 | eISBN: 978-0-8229-9017-8
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
ABOUT THIS BOOK
Winner of the 2023 Drue Heinz Literature Prize
Small in Real Life invokes the myth and melancholy of Southern California glamor, of starry-eyed women and men striving for their own Hollywood shimmer and the seamy undersides and luxurious mystique of the Golden State. Exiled to a Malibu rehab, an alcoholic paparazzo spies on his celebrity friend for an online tabloid. Down to her last dollar, a Hollywood hanger-on steals designer handbags from her dying friend’s bungalow. Blinded by grief, an LA judge atones after condescending to a failed actress on a date. When hunger for power, fame, and love betrays the senses, the characters in these nine stories must reckon with false choices and their search for belonging with the wrong people. Small in Real Life offers an insider’s view of California and the golden promises of possibility and redemption that have long made the West glitter.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Kelly Sather is a writer, former entertainment lawyer, and screenwriter. Her stories and interviews have appeared in Santa Monica Review, J Journal, Pembroke Magazine, PANK, ZYZZYVA, and elsewhere. She grew up in Los Angeles and lives in Northern California.
REVIEWS
"Her writing points toward Raymond Carver’s gritty realism and Nathanael West’s satiric desperation." —Pittsburgh Quarterly
"The winner of the 2023 Drue Heinz Literature Prize, this story collection is a character-driven exploration set in Southern California. It’s soft and subtle with keen observations."
—Debutiful
"Through each character’s desperate and reckless acts, we get a glimpse of heart." —Tupelo Quarterly
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
The Spaniard
Small in Real Life
Handbag Parade
Harmony
Red Bluff
God’s Work
Venice
Toucan
Oracle
Acknowledgments
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