A Better Class of People - by Robert Lopez (Paperback)

About the Book

"In an uncanny, distorted version of New York City, a man rides the subway through the chaos of an ordinary commute. He may have a gun in his pocket. He may be looking for someone--a woman named Esperanza. Between stops, we shuttle back and forth through time and see a man who stands in traffic, the same man seizing and shuddering on a sidewalk, an institution where the man is housed with other undesirables (or troublemakers?), a neighborhood where all the residents have forgotten their names. Over everything looms the specter of a nameless menace, a pervasive sense that something--more than just a ride--is coming to an end. With Robert Lopez's signature innovation, A Better Class of People delivers a network of stories interconnected and careening like subway tunnels through the realities of modern America: immigration, gun violence, police brutality, sexual harassment, climate change, and the point of fracture at which we find ourselves, where reality and perception are indistinguishable."--Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

A brilliant novel-in-stories from award-winning author Robert Lopez
In an uncanny, distorted version of New York City, a man rides the subway through the chaos of an ordinary commute. He may have a gun in his pocket. He may be looking for someone--a woman named Esperanza.

Between stops, we shuttle back and forth through time and see a man who stands in traffic, the same man seizing and shuddering on a sidewalk, an institution where the man is housed with other undesirables (or troublemakers?), a neighborhood where all the residents have forgotten their names. Over everything looms the specter of a nameless menace, a pervasive sense that something--more than just a ride--is coming to an end.

With Robert Lopez's signature innovation, A Better Class of People delivers a network of stories interconnected and careening like subway tunnels through the realities of modern America: immigration, gun violence, police brutality, sexual harassment, climate change, and the point of fracture at which we find ourselves, where reality and perception are indistinguishable.

Review Quotes

"Lopez has the ability to give readers whiplash with his unconventional and bewitching stories." -LA Times

"Lopez takes a look inside, messy guts, beating heart and all. A rawly observed universe peopled with voices of stirring honesty and wild loop-de-loops. Funny, brutal, brilliant." -Samantha Hunt

"Robert Lopez is one of the most exciting writers working today and these linked stories are an excellent introduction to his blazingly original intelligence and wit." -Jenny Offill

"Robert Lopez's A Better Class of People bowled me over. These stories are taut, intense, mysterious, and they echo off each other in totally unexpected ways -- and to boot -- the collection is an honest, funny, and brutal homage to New York City." -Peter Orner