"For the women in these stories, many of them mothers, the sense of private exile leads to liaisons beyond the boundaries of established relationships, where fidelities shift, and sexual relationships and secret-keeping become momentary stands against loss. The profound losses in these stories—the accidental deaths of children, losses of parental love, the effects of time passing—continue to haunt, both deepened and suspended by Karen Brown's glimmering prose."—Nancy Reisman, author of The First Desire and House Fires
"Karen Brown is one of those writers who has you by the throat from the first paragraph. Though her characters are burdened by self-loathing and what one of them calls 'an unremitting expectation of loss,' Brown has so meticulously observed the worlds they inhabit that their rare moments of love and hope are hard-won, beautifully nuanced, and deeply felt."—Enid Shomer, author of Tourist Season
"Each of these stories is its own sensual journey, an unflinching exploration of desire and its consequences. Pins and Neeedles is a bold, sexy, beautiful portrait of the human heart."—A. Manette Ansay, author of Blue Water and Vinegar Hill
"Winner of the Grace Paley Prize ... this volume includes several excellent stories, notable among them "Unction," "She Fell to Her Knees," and, espeically, "The Ropewalk." These stories reveal a reflective narrator deeply engaged with the world around her."—Choice