• “[A] riotous, dazzling debut that is as profound as it is entertaining.”

    — Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

  • “A brilliant and immaculate debut.”

    — Danielle Evans, author of The Office of Historical Corrections

  • "This clear-eyed debut brims human."

    — Tracy O’Neill, author of Quotients

  • “Reading Shannon Sanders makes me want to visit home.”

    — Tony Tulathimutte, author of Private Citizens

  • "[T]o read [these] stories is to get the gift you don’t always get from your own family: the feeling of being seen.”

    — Will Allison, author of Long Drive Home

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FORTHCOMING FROM GRAYWOLF PRESS IN OCTOBER 2023, COMPANY FOLLOWS THE COLLINS FAMILY, A CLAN OF BLACK ENTREPRENEURS, ACADEMICS, AND ENTERTAINERS, THROUGH MULTIPLE GENERATIONS OF CHALLENGE AND TRIUMPH.

Each of 13 unforgettable linked short stories involves an encounter between guest and host. In “The Good, Good Men,” two brothers reunite to oust a “deadbeat” boyfriend from their mother’s house. In “The Everest Society,” the brothers’ sister anxiously prepares for a home visit from a social worker before adopting a child. In “Birds of Paradise,” their aunt, newly promoted to university provost, navigates a minefield of microaggressions at her own welcome party. And in the haunting title story, the provost’s sister finds her solitary life disrupted when her late sister’s daughter comes calling.

The stories in this collection, hailed as “masterly” and “a winner” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), are about intimacy, societal and familial obligations, and the ways inheritances shape our fates. Buoyant, somber, sharp, and affectionate, this collection announces a remarkable new voice in fiction.