The Wrong Heaven

(Paperback)

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'Incredibly fun to read but also full of these frank and wise observations that stuck in my head long after' Aimee Bender, bestselling author of The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

In The Wrong Heaven, Amy Bonnaffons draws us into a delightfully strange universe, in which her conflicted characters seek to solve their sexual and spiritual dilemmas in all the wrong places. The title story's heroine reckons with grief while arguing with Jesus and Mary lawn ornaments that come to life when she plugs them in. In "Horse", we enter a world in which women transform themselves into animals through a series of medical injections. In "Alternate", a young woman convinces herself that all she needs to revive a stagnant relationship is the perfect poster of the Dalai Lama.

Intelligent, wry and crackling with energy, The Wrong Heaven is a stunning debut collection about the subtle mysteries beneath the surface of our lives and our power to transform.

Reviews

Incredibly fun to read but also full of these frank and wise observations that stuck in my head long after

In her amazing, wildly inventive collection, Amy Bonnaffons writes about transformation, each story further complicating the world as we know it. With a style that blends humor and sincerity in such strange, perfect ratios, Bonnaffons reveals the mysteries inside of us, just waiting to make themselves known. The Wrong Heaven, so wondrous, will alter you in all the necessary ways

Amy Bonnaffons is the real deal. She's a woman of impossible juxtapositions. Funny and wise, thrilling and disciplined, strange and masterful. Do yourself a favor and read this: you'll be surprised where you find yourself, but you'll never feel lost

God, these stories. I wanted to stop people on the street. I know contemporary writers who can lacerate, and I know others who are funny, and I even know some who can pull off pathos. But I don't know any who can do all three at once - with mastery, mischief, and meaning - like Amy Bonnaffons. She gives you a key to that secret room where, for a dear second, everything stops moving so quickly and you get a glimpse of the truth

At once goofy, poignant, and edged with the fantastic, the stories in Bonnaffons's debut collection initially surprise, then turn into one long, delicious rush. Not just fun but full of smart ideas - Library Journal starred review

In her first collection, Bonnaffons dazzles and cuts with 10 hilarious and cathartic short stories. Though the pieces vary in tone and format, they uniformly focus on a complex female protagonist. The author employs a modern magical realism, absurd, nihilistic, and playful all at once. Resonant of Alissa Nutting's novels and George Saunders' Pastoralia (2000), Bonnaffon's first collection presents a powerful and fresh new voice. - BOOKLIST

'Like the best storytelling, The Wrong Heaven feels like a gift - warm, intimate, and very, very funny. The characters are messy and vibrant and gloriously flawed, and their transformations are absolutely enthralling. This energizing collection will stay with me - happily so - for a long time' - Kayla Rae Whitaker, author of The Animators

These stories are eerie, enthralling, and hilarious. Women grow hooves, carve dolls who talk, have sex (or almost) with angels. Bonnaffons is a masterful chronicler of female desire and its discontents. - Leni Zumas, author of Red Clocks

Author Bio

Amy Bonnaffons is a founding editor of 7x7.la, a literary journal devoted to collaborations between writers and visual artists. Born in New York City, she now lives in Athens, GA, where she is working on a Ph.D. at the University of Georgia. She holds a B.A. from Yale University and a M.F.A. from New York University.