Helen of Nowhere - by Makenna Goodman (Paperback)

About the Book

"From the "brilliantly complex" (Jenny Offill) author of The Shame comes an electrifying dive into one man's fractured psyche as he searches for a new life. Taking place over the course of one day, Helen of Nowhere introduces an intimate cast: an unnamed man at the end of both his career and marriage, a young realtor showing him an idyllic house in the countryside, and Helen, the mystifying former owner whose spectral presence seems to imbue the house's every grain of wood. Through stories of the remarkable woman, the man is presented with an alternate way of life. But, as evening fades into black, the specifics of how to live it become more than what he bargained for. Philosophically adventurous, strange, and fascinating, Helen of Nowhere examines the structures that form our identity, staring the reader down to ask the haunting question: what is the cost of true happiness?"--

Book Synopsis

An electrifying novel about the delights and dangers of starting over.

In the middle of the countryside, a realtor is showing a disgraced professor around an idyllic house. She speaks not only about the home's many wonderful qualities but about its previous owner, the mystifying Helen, whose presence still seems to suffuse every fixture. Through hearing stories of Helen's chosen way of living, the man begins to see that his own story is not actually over--rather, he is being offered a chance to buy his way into the simple life, close to the land, that's always been out of reach to him. But as evening fades into black, he will learn that the asking price may be much higher, and stranger, than anticipated.

Philosophically and formally adventurous, at once intimate and cosmic in scope, Helen of Nowhere asks: What must we give up in exchange for true happiness?

Review Quotes

Praise for Helen of Nowhere

"Virtuosically written, with an insanity inside its sanity--or the other way around--that seems the proper use to make of reality in this moment." --Rachel Cusk, award winning author of Parade

"Goodman has wrought an epic in miniature, somehow as appealingly vast as a Greek tragedy or a Platonic dialogue, equal parts philosophy and art that's also delightfully wicked, like something from a fairytale or a fever dream." --Sarah Manguso, author of Liars

"This is a wild and brave book! Intrepid, reconfiguring, and full of the best hauntings. In Helen of Nowhere, Goodman has daringly crafted toothsome characters you will devour." --Samantha Hunt, author of The Unwritten Book

"A furious energy runs through Helen of Nowhere, whose every sentence is a joy to read. This is a book about loneliness and bitterness written with a wicked humor, and its moments of grace are as striking as they are enigmatic. A unique and brilliant work." --Ayşegül Savaş, author of The Anthropologists

"Blending biting wit and gorgeous, lyrical prose, Helen of Nowhere is at once a modern satire summoning Dickens in A Christmas Carol, an exploration of the failures of second wave feminism, and a sneaky ode to Woolf and Thoreau. It's hard to pin down what this book is exactly, and whether or not Helen is Jesus, a furniture maker, god, the house, a wife, or time itself. Which is why you must restart it the moment you turn the last haunting page." --Alexandra Auder, author of Don't Call Me Home

"Helen of Nowhere is an extraordinary book, gripping, daring, and unusual. With a pacing that completely swept me along, Goodman explores the need to steady oneself by valuing that which is dear, by taking care of the love that needs to be nourished. The trajectory through anger into healing feels like a real journey in time--the dialogue flashing past, written with such speed and brilliance. I wolfed it down." --Celia Paul, author of Letters to Gwen John

About the Author

Makenna Goodman is the author of two novels, Helen of Nowhere (Coffee House Press, 2025) and The Shame (Milkweed Editions, 2020), and has written for international publications including the New York Review of Books, the Los Angeles Review of Books, Harvard Review, The White Review, BOMB, The Common, ASTRA Magazine, and Mousse Magazine. Also an editor, she is based in Vermont.