Available Formats
Because I Don't Know What You Mean and What You Don't
By (Author) Josie Long
Canongate Books
Canongate Books
9th July 2024
4th April 2024
Main
United Kingdom
General
Fiction
Short stories
823.92
Long-listed for Comedy Women in Print Prize 2023 (UK)
Paperback
208
Width 130mm, Height 198mm, Spine 14mm
152g
From a comic mastermind comes this brilliant collection of stories Three teenagers believe they are witches. A woman defaces a local billboard. A bored landlord tries to influence his son's best friend. A cul-de-sac WhatsApp group discusses eggs at length. A heavily pregnant woman finds a way to time travel and a girl discovers joy on a stolen bicycle . . . Each tale paints a life in miniature and offers an escape chute from the mayhem of modern life.
'Josie Long's first collection reveals a natural gift with a frank and poignant tale; teenage experience, community WhatsApp groups and broken family units are picked apart with a wry cynicism at the weirdness and cruelty of life . . . an approachable debut full of heart and hope' - Observer
'Josie Long can REALLY write. Read these stories NOW' - DAWN FRENCH
'Her writing is miraculous. A dazzling debut' - JOANNA LUMLEY
'Josie's stories are like her comedy - beautifully observed, strange, good-hearted, unsettling and truly funny. Read them immediately' - A. L. KENNEDY
'I loved this short story collection. Funny, poignant, daft, and occasionally even hilariously cynical' - FRANKIE BOYLE
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Josie Long is a writer and a stand-up comedian. She won the Best Newcomer award at Edinburgh Fringe Festival and has been nominated three times for Best Show. She was born in Kent in 1982 and studied English at Oxford University. She currently lives in Glasgow.josielong.com | @josielong