{"product_id":"atavists-stories-hardcover","title":"Atavists: Stories - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eLydia Millet\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe word \u003cem\u003eatavism\u003c\/em\u003e, coined by a botanist and popularized by a criminologist, refers to the resurfacing of a primitive evolutionary trait or urge in a modern being. This inventive collection from Lydia Millet offers overlapping tales of urges ranging from rage to jealousy to yearning--a fluent triumph of storytelling, rich in ideas and emotions both petty and grand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe titular atavists include an underachieving, bewildered young bartender; a middle-aged mother convinced her gentle son-in-law is fixated on geriatric porn; a bodybuilder with an incel's fantasy life; an arrogant academic accused of plagiarism; and an empty-nester dad determined to host refugees in a tiny house in his backyard.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs they pick away at the splitting seams in American culture, Millet's characters shimmer with the sense of powerlessness we share in an era of mass overwhelm. A beautician in a waxing salon faces a sudden resurgence of grief in the midst of a bikini Brazilian; a couple sets up a camera to find out who's been slipping homophobic letters into their mailbox; a jilted urban planner stalks a man she met on a dating app.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn its rich warp and weft of humiliations and human error, \u003cem\u003eAtavists\u003c\/em\u003e returns to the trenchant, playful social commentary that made \u003cem\u003eA Children's Bible\u003c\/em\u003e a runaway hit. In these stories sharp observations of middle-class mores and sanctimony give way to moments of raw exposure and longing: \u003cem\u003eAtavists\u003c\/em\u003e performs an uncanny fictional magic, full of revelation but also hilarious, unpretentious, and warm.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003ePraise for Lydia Millet\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Is there a writer more profound and less pretentious than Lydia Millet? In her novels and story collections, a dozen in all, Millet deals out existential questions like playing cards, and like any good casino dealer, her hands never shake.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-- NPR\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"[Millet is] one of the funniest writers of American fiction, a rival of George Saunders, Paul Beatty, Nell Zink, and Donald Antrim.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-- Christian Lorentzen, \u003cem\u003eNew York\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"[S]harp and implacably funny. . . . Millet's novels draw solace from the idea that we are infinitely bigger than ourselves.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-- Katy Waldman, \u003cem\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"If you think it's hard to find original voices in contemporary fiction, you're not really reading properly--Millet is one such voice: comic, erudite, humane.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-- Jonny Diamond, Lit Hub editor in chief\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Millet is one of the most fascinating novelists working.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-- \u003cem\u003eWall Street Journal Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Millet's great insight--why her writing matters so much right now--is that looking outside the human is what gives human life its meaning.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-- Christine Smallwood, \u003cem\u003eNew York Times Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 240\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.9 x 8.4 x 5.8 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 22, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44378971897958,"sku":"9781324074410","price":36.11,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0599\/7255\/0758\/files\/CixhZ-lROc9781324074410.webp?v=1768912997","url":"https:\/\/infinitylightwa.com\/products\/atavists-stories-hardcover","provider":"Infinity Light","version":"1.0","type":"link"}