{"product_id":"white-rat-short-stories-9780807012949","title":"White Rat: Short Stories","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe acclaimed author's first collection of stories, reissued to coincide with the paperback publication of her second and latest, \u003ci\u003eButter\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Gayl Jones's work represents a watershed in American literature. From a literary standpoint, her form is impeccable . . . and as a Black woman writer, her truth-telling, filled with beauty, tragedy, humor, and incisiveness, is unmatched.\"--Imani Perry \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eGayl Jones has been described as one of the great literary writers of the 20th century and was recently a finalist for both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. This collection of short fiction was her third book, originally edited and published by Toni Morrison in 1977, and is reissued now alongside her second collection, \u003ci\u003eButter\u003c\/i\u003e, in paperback for the first time. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe collection contains 12 provocative tales that explore the emotional and mental terrain of a diverse cast of characters, from the innocent to the insane. In each, Jones displays her unflinching ability to dive into the most treacherous of psyches and circumstances: the title story examines the identity and relationship conundrums of a Black man who can pass for white, earning him the name \"White Rat\" as an infant; \"The Women\" follows a girl whose mother brings a line of female lovers to live in their home; \"Jevata\" details 18-year-old Freddy's relationship with the 50-year-old title character; \"The Coke Factory\" tracks the thoughts of a mentally-handicapped adolescent abandoned by his mother; and \"Asylum\" focuses on a woman having a nervous breakdown, trying to protect her dignity and her private parts as she enters an institution. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn uncompromising prose, and dialect that veers from northern, educated tongues to down-home southern colloquialisms, Jones illuminates lives that society ignores, moving them to center stage.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eGayl Jones\u003c\/b\u003e was born in Kentucky in 1949. She attended Connecticut College and Brown University, and has taught at Wellesley College and the University of Michigan. Her landmark books include \u003ci\u003eCorregidora\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eEva's Man\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Healing \u003c\/i\u003e (a National Book Award finalist and\u003ci\u003e New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e Notable Book of the Year), \u003ci\u003ePalmares \u003c\/i\u003e (a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in fiction), and most recently, \u003ci\u003eThe Birdcatcher\u003c\/i\u003e (National Book Award finalist).\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Beacon Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50645255323922,"sku":"9780807012949","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_c9e59a06-9f55-4e8a-8d0f-d411e5d48aa3.jpg?v=1733145704","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/white-rat-short-stories-9780807012949","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}