{"product_id":"tea-leaves-9781612942759","title":"Tea Leaves","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eTea Leaves \u003c\/em\u003eis an astonishing collection of fables for our time by a young writer of tremendous power and promise.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTea Leaves\u003c\/em\u003e presents 17 speculative short stories that place queer characters in larger-than-life situations to emphasize the surreal experience of marginalization. A queer romance spans multiple incarnations, but only in doomed cities. A gay medieval scholar must testify for his life to the otherworldly octopus who traps him in a cafe bathroom. Ignoring their better judgment, a witch brings their mortal partner on a hunt for a dangerous sorcerer and must cope with the dire consequences.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eEach of the stories within\u003cem\u003e Tea Leaves\u003c\/em\u003e explores the urgency of modern queer life in encounters between the otherworldly and the queer other. In juxtaposing queer narratives with new, larger-than-life myths, \u003cem\u003eTea Leaves\u003c\/em\u003e both exalts and lampoons the queer experience while examining the sometimes surreal obstacles of marginalization.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eJacob Budenz\u003c\/strong\u003e is a queer writer, multi-disciplinary performer, educator, and witch with an MFA from the University of New Orleans and a BA from Johns Hopkins University whose work explores the intersections between otherness and the otherworldly. A 2020 winner of the Baker Innovative Projects Grant for \u003cem\u003eSimaetha: a Dreambaby Cabaret\u003c\/em\u003e, Jake has work in journals including \u003cem\u003eSlipstream, Taco Bell Quarterly, Baffling, Wussy Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e, and more, as well as anthologies by Mason Jar Press and Lycan Valley publications.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Bywater Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50651760361746,"sku":"9781612942759","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_6f127fbe-1b46-432c-93a6-dc39855a6ea6.jpg?v=1733308968","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/tea-leaves-9781612942759","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}