Souvenir Museum

“A powerfully written new collection of short fiction that explores the mysterious bonds of family” from the O. Henry Prize-winning author (USA Today).

LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD AND THE STORY PRIZE

In these stories, family connections are tested, transformed, fractured, and fortified. A recent widower and his adult son ferry to a craggy Scottish island in search of puffins. An actress who plays a children’s game-show villainess ushers in the New Year with her deadbeat half brother. A mother, pining for her children, feasts on loaves of challah to fill the void. A new couple navigates a tightrope walk toward love. And on a trip to a Texas water park with their son, two fathers each confront a personal fear.

With sentences that crackle and spark and showcase her trademark wit, McCracken traces how our closely held desires—for intimacy, atonement, comfort—bloom and wither against the indifferent passing of time. Her characters embark on journeys that leave them indelibly changed—and so do her readers. The Souvenir Museum showcases the talents of one of our finest contemporary writers as she tenderly takes the pulse of our collective and individual lives.

“Charming and sly, these twelve far-flung stories—from a Texas water park to a rugged Scottish island—share McCracken’s tender appreciation for flawed people (struggling lovers, a grieving mother, a puppeteer) just trying to communicate.” —People

“The master stylist and author of Bowlaway rolls another strike with this magnificent array of idiosyncratic love stories.” —Oprah Daily

“Moving depictions of marriage and parenthood, and love, betrayal, and loneliness . . . A steady stream of exquisite writing.” —The Boston Globe