Desperate Bodies - by Lydia Mathis (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Inaugural Winner of Cultured Mag's Young Writer Prize

"Broke my heart from the very first page . . . literary shock and awe at its finest."--Deesha Philyaw, author of The Confessions of First Lady Freeman and The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

From a ferocious new talent, a debut story collection excavating the desire, humor, and horror in the everyday lives of Black women and girls--for readers of Deesha Philyaw and Kelly Link

With a voice that vibrates on the page, Lydia Mathis' debut collection is set in the American South and her sharply drawn, authentic characters shine a light on what we're willing to do to ourselves and to others in service of our desires. The madness in the ordinary rules here: an overworked college safety officer is confronted by a bloody figure who walks into her office; a sex worker runs into a client en route to a parent-teacher conference; a teacher is plagued by a ghost determined to tidy her apartment.

Desperate Bodies depicts the fragility, strength, and unruliness of Black women and girls' bodies and the power in being honest about their desires. In unflinching prose, Mathis takes a frank and determined look at what it means to be subjected to imbalances of power through the perspectives of young girls and adult women. With surprising turns and a touch of the supernatural, these stories refuse to look away from the most honest, raw moments of womanhood.

Visceral and unyielding, Desperate Bodies is a thrillingly dark ride that introduces Lydia Mathis as a major new writer.

Review Quotes

Praise for Desperate Bodies:

Inaugural Winner of Cultured Magazine's Young Writer Prize

A Marie Claire Best Book of the Month

"[Mathis] masterfully stretches the bounds of an oft-maligned literary form"--Cultured Magazine

"Candid, revealing."--Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"Pithy stories about young Black women run the gamut from tragic to comic and back again . . . Mathis' forthright and frequently elegant prose never gets in the way of blood, amniotic fluid, half-eaten food, or even vermin any more than it skirts around the deepest pain and longings. What stands out in each story, long or short, is the feeling that the real story isn't over. Whether the end is sad or fierce--and sometimes deliberately a bit fantastical--its protagonist has much more to say. Compelling and realistic characters will linger in your consciousness long after you've finished the book."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Girls and women explore their desires for connection in Mathis's incendiary debut story collection . . . Mathis mixes the slice-of-life stories with artful touches of the supernatural... Each entry holds its own in this remarkable collection. Readers will be grateful to discover this assured new voice." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Mathis' first book is a bold rendering of Black girlhood . . . Set in the American South, this eclectic mix of tales that are both powerfully evocative and irresistibly relatable illuminate the desires, power, and resiliency that shape the everyday lives of Black women and girls. Here readers encounter the extraordinary amidst the mundane and vice versa . . . Each story is a testament to Mathis' knack for cultivating a strong sense of emotionality in each of her characters and embracing the unexpected. Her unyielding prose and sharp humor are wholly compelling, as she dramatizes the lengths people will go to in order to achieve their dreams. Desperate Bodies is a thrilling journey through the trials and tribulations of adolescence, one that establishes Mathis as a dynamic voice in fiction."--Sydney Gaw, Booklist

"Lydia Mathis's stunning debut collection broke my heart from the very first page . . . then proceeded to take me on the wildest ride of my reading life. These exquisitely written stories are fresh, audacious, and tender. Desperate Bodies is literary shock and awe at its finest."--Deesha Philyaw, author of The Confessions of First Lady Freeman and The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

"Mathis's stories have an easy resonance, a tangible signature one can recognize, delight in, and mourn with as they move through the body, creating a stunning gravity that lingers long after the last word."--Dantiel W. Moniz, author of Milk Blood Heat

"What does it mean to have a body? The stories in Lydia Mathis's enthralling debut collection examine this question and all the messy viscera it invites in its answer. Whether her female protagonists are encountering ghosts, murderers, betrayals, or the indignity of a bad date, they remain tenaciously true to their desires. Desperate Bodies is a bold and original take on contemporary womanhood."--Lena Valencia, author of Mystery Lights

"An impressive and welcome new voice."--The Center for Fiction

About the Author

Lydia Mathis has an MFA in fiction from New York University. She earned her BA in English Literature with a minor in Classical Civilizations from Agnes Scott College. She has worked as a teacher for Teach for America in Memphis and as a teaching fellow at Coler-Goldwater Hospital in New York City. She is the recipient of A Public Space's 2023 Editorial Fellowship and is currently an assistant editor at A Public Space. She has stories published in North American Review, Southeast Review, Torch Magazine, Stanchion, Five on the Fifth, and oranges journal. She is based in Atlanta, GA.