Ravenous - by Sara Cooper (Paperback)

About the Book

Breigh is a pregnant elder millennial whose livestreamed quest for momfluencer fame spirals into depravity. An incisive satire of consumerism, performative femininity, and social media.

Book Synopsis

Breigh is a hot elder millennial who is obsessed with the brands she is ambassading for. Her policy is YES, and her livestreams are viral. But she's pregnant now, and her body's changing. It's not that she's hungry. She's definitely not depressed. She just sometimes eats boxes of makeup before passing out.

Daddy's bought a brand-new home for Breigh and Baby, complete with a Greenguard Gold-certified, twice-imported velvet infant chaise -- but is he cheating on her with a hotter, younger coworker? Breigh has to get Baby out before it ruins her. She has to create more and better content than the other Momfluencers. She has to unbox something new. She has to unbox ... Baby! Baby approves of her seven-step marketing plan. Welcome to #LiveBirth.

Breigh's increasingly unhinged life reflects her generation's anxieties around psychological manipulation through social media platforms. Multi-award-winning author Sara Cooper presents a wild debut novel in this incisive satire of consumerism, performative femininity, and social media.

Review Quotes

"Ravenous is in conversation with twentieth-century modernist feminist literature but in a way that feels deeply, incisively now. If Jean Rhys or Djuna Barnes came back as a pregnant influencer maybe we'd get something like this satirical digital-age fever dream. Cooper dives into the void at the heart of consumer culture and turns the hurtling freefall into music."--Rachel Sheinkin, author of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

"Ravenous follows a young woman who has built her world and identity around her daily livestreams, where she voraciously 'unboxes' the mountains of products that are delivered to her door. The result is a stunning portrait of contemporary life that hits the sweet spot between comedy and tragedy and leads to an ending that leaves not only the products and characters, but the readers, 'unboxed'."--Deborah Brevoort, author The Women of Lockerbie and other plays

"A perfect blend of the insanity and comedy of what it is to be alive and pregnant today. Cooper's lyrical use of language is stunning."--Mindi Dickstein, lyricist of Little Women (Broadway)

"In a deeply hilarious voice, Cooper skins capitalist, Momfluencer culture alive. It simmers with rage, and I couldn't stop reading. Obsessed."--Meredith Hambrock, author of She's a Lamb!

"Incisive, propulsive, and darkly funny. Cooper's vibrant language buzzes at a frenetic pace, articulating the pleasure and pain of what it means to consume and be consumed. Obsessed."--Tiffany Morris, author of Green Fuse Burning

About the Author

Sara Cooper is a debut novelist and an award-winning playwright-lyricist. She lives in New York with her husband John and their son Theo. Major awards include Richard Rodgers Award, American Academy of Arts and Letters (2022); ASCAP Foundation Lucille and Jack Yellen Award (2021); Grand Jury Prize, Barnstorm Media (2020); Jonathan Larson Grant, American Theatre Wing (2014). RAVENOUS was a Finalist for the 2025 Tucson Festival of Books Literary Awards. Recent theatre writing highlights: Perpetual Sunshine & the Ghost Girls, development with Paper Mill Playhouse (2025), University of Michigan (2024), Village Theatre (2023), National Alliance for Musical Theatre (2022), Rhinebeck Writers Retreat (2021); SINGULARITY, Purchase College grant (2024), Honorable Mention, Relentless Award (2024); HoT, development with Goodspeed (2022), Johnny Mercer Foundation (2020), New York Theatre Barn New (2020); The Memory Show, productions at LAMB Theatre (2022), New Bard, London (2016), Transport Group, The Duke on 42nd Street (2013), WaterGateMedia, Seoul (2012-2013), and Barrington Stage Company (2010), development with NAMT (2010); Windows and Breakfast, production, Lowbrow Opera Collective (2021, 2020); Elevator Heart, production, Moxie Arts (2019), development at USF (2018); Fault Lines, Kennedy Center, American Opera Initiative (2018); Things I Left On Long Island, FringeNYC (2014), Overall Excellence Award: Playwriting (2014), TimeOut NY Critics' Pick (2014). MFA Graduate Musical Theatre Writing, NYU. Sara currently teaches at Purchase College.