Kristen Arnett

A New York Times Bestseller "This book is my song of the summer." --Parul Sehgal, The New York Times A Most Anticipated Book of 2019 at Esquire, The Week, BuzzFeed, NYLON, Bustle, HuffPost, The Boston Globe, and more.

Mostly Dead Things

Named a Most Anticipated Book of the Year by Elle, BuzzFeed, Good Housekeeping, Thrillist, The Advocate, Lit Hub, and Paperback Paris From the author of the New York Times-bestselling sensation Mostly Dead Things: a surprising and moving story of two mothers, one difficult son, and the limitations of marriage, parenthood, and love If she's being honest, Sammie Lucas is scared of her son. Working from home in the close quarters of their Florida house, she lives with one wary eye peeled on Samson, a sullen, unknowable boy who resists her every attempt to bond with him. Uncertain in her own feelings about motherhood, she tries her best--driving, cleaning, cooking, prodding him to finish projects for school--while growing increasingly resentful of Monika, her confident but absent wife. As Samson grows from feral toddler to surly teenager, Sammie's life begins to deteriorate into a mess of unruly behavior, and her struggle to create a picture-perfect queer family unravels. When her son's hostility finally spills over into physical aggression, Sammie must confront her role in the mess--and the possibility that it will never be clean again. Blending the warmth and wit of Arnett's breakout hit, Mostly Dead Things, with a candid take on queer family dynamics, With Teeth is a thought-provoking portrait of the delicate fabric of family--and the many ways it can be torn apart.

A Novel

With Teeth

A TODAY SHOW SPRING PICK

"Sweet, sexy, sad, articulate, and funny." - Vogue

"As much heart, humor, and gritty realness as can fit between two covers." - People

"A funny and heartfelt tale of one woman grappling with grief, love and how to move forward.” - New York Times

From the New York Times bestselling author of Mostly Dead Things, a sparkling and funny new novel of entertainment, ambition, art, and love.

Cherry Hendricks might be down on her luck, but she can write the book on what makes something funny: she’s a professional clown who creates raucous, zany fun at gigs all over Orlando. Between her clowning and her shifts at an aquarium store for extra cash, she’s always hustling. Not to mention balancing her judgmental mother, her messy love life, and her equally messy community of fellow performers.

Things start looking up when Cherry meets Margot the Magnificent—a much older lesbian magician—who seems to have worked out the lines between art, business, and life, and has a slick, successful career to prove it. With Margot’s mentorship and industry connections, Cherry is sure to take her art to the next level. Plus, Margot is sexy as hell. It’s not long before Cherry must decide how much she’s willing to risk for Margot and for her own explosive new act—and what kind of clown she wants to be under her suit.

Equal parts bravado, tenderness, and humor, and bursting with misfits, magicians, musicians, and mimes, Stop Me If You've Heard This One is a masterpiece of comedic fiction that asks big questions about art and performance, friendship and community, and the importance of timing in jokes and in life.

Stop Me If You've Heard This One

Arachnophobia

Con i denti

Kyle Wu

Michelle Lyn King

Annabel Graham

In Retro Five, the acclaimed literary magazine Joyland has collected fourteen of its editors' favorites stories from the last year. Annabel Graham explores scars left and secrets found in a teenage girl's first summer in New York; Olga Breydo refracts the American ritual of homecoming through the eyes of a young Ukrainian immigrant in Missouri. C.E. Hyun tells the tale of a Norse god reborn as a young woman living in Venice, and childhood friends reconnect at Los Angeles's Chateau Marmont in Duncan Birmingham's tale. Some themes are universal: Lillian Weber focuses on complications between roommates, and Michele Lyn King sharply depicts the ghost of an ex-girlfriend hovering over a nascent relationship at an everytown-college.

Selections from Joyland Magazine

Retro Five

A TODAY SHOW SPRING PICK "Sweet, sexy, sad, articulate, and funny." - Vogue "As much heart, humor, and gritty realness as can fit between two covers." - People "A funny and heartfelt tale of one woman grappling with grief, love and how to move forward.” - New York Times From the New York Times bestselling author of Mostly Dead Things, a sparkling and funny new novel of entertainment, ambition, art, and love. Cherry Hendricks might be down on her luck, but she can write the book on what makes something funny: she’s a professional clown who creates raucous, zany fun at gigs all over Orlando. Between her clowning and her shifts at an aquarium store for extra cash, she’s always hustling. Not to mention balancing her judgmental mother, her messy love life, and her equally messy community of fellow performers. Things start looking up when Cherry meets Margot the Magnificent—a much older lesbian magician—who seems to have worked out the lines between art, business, and life, and has a slick, successful career to prove it. With Margot’s mentorship and industry connections, Cherry is sure to take her art to the next level. Plus, Margot is sexy as hell. It’s not long before Cherry must decide how much she’s willing to risk for Margot and for her own explosive new act—and what kind of clown she wants to be under her suit. Equal parts bravado, tenderness, and humor, and bursting with misfits, magicians, musicians, and mimes, Stop Me If You've Heard This One is a masterpiece of comedic fiction that asks big questions about art and performance, friendship and community, and the importance of timing in jokes and in life.

Kristen Arnett

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