The Goodbye Process - by Mary Jones

About the Book

What happens when you are forced to let go of the things you love the most? What are you left with?In her stunning debut short story collection, The Goodbye Process, Mary Jones uses her distinctive voice to examine the painful and sometimes surreal ways we say goodbye.The stories--which range from tender and heartbreaking to unsettling and darkly funny--will push you out of your comfort zone and ignite intense emotions surrounding love and loss. A woman camps out on the porch of an ex-lover who has barricaded himself inside the house; a preteen girl caught shoplifting finds herself in grave danger; a Los Angeles real estate agent falls for a woman who helps him detach from years of dramatic plastic surgery; a man hires a professional mourner to ensure his wife's funeral is a success. Again and again, Jones's characters find themselves facing the ends of things: relationships, health, and innocence.Arresting, original, and beautifully rendered, this story collection packs a punch, just the way grief doesknocking us off our feet.

Book Synopsis

A National Bestseller!

Longlisted for the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Short Story Collection

Longlisted for THE STORY PRIZE

A Library Journal Best Book of 2024!

A Most Exciting Debut Short Story Collection of 2024 by Electric Literature

"Short story fans might just discover their new favorite author in this arresting collection, a must-have." --Library Journal (starred review)

What happens when you are forced to let go of the things you love the most? What are you left with?

In her stunning debut short story collection, The Goodbye Process, Mary Jones uses her distinctive voice to examine the painful and sometimes surreal ways we say goodbye.

The stories--which range from tender and heartbreaking to unsettling and darkly funny--will push you out of your comfort zone and ignite intense emotions surrounding love and loss. A woman camps out on the porch of an ex-lover who has barricaded himself inside the house; a preteen girl caught shoplifting finds herself in grave danger; a Los Angeles real estate agent falls for a woman who helps him detach from years of dramatic plastic surgery; a man hires a professional mourner to ensure his wife's funeral is a success. Again and again, Jones's characters find themselves facing the ends of things: relationships, health, and innocence.

Arresting, original, and beautifully rendered, this story collection packs a punch, just the way grief does―knocking us off our feet.

Review Quotes

"The stories of The Goodbye Process are startling, haunting, and original. Mary Jones captures the eerie light that transfuses those often-forgotten and overlooked corners of the heart. These stories shape shift and beguile, offering up their remarkable insights with wit and genuine style. A brilliant book of stories."
--Brandon Taylor, author of The Late Americans

"Mary Jones builds enormous depth in direct clear sentences--over and over again, I found myself moved and wowed by how much she packed into a moment, how swiftly she could conjure a person. And she pulls us in, too--her words have these subtle magnets in them, drawing a reader close. Thrilling abundance here."
--Aimee Bender, author of The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

"Mary Jones's delightful story collection, The Goodbye Process, is full of surprises; sometimes funny, often heartbreaking, always memorable."
--Jill McCorkle, author of Old Crimes: and Other Stories

"Keenly felt and observed, always humane, the stories in Jones's debut begin where all the best stories do: the end of one thing, the start of the next. The Goodbye Process introduces an arresting new voice."
--Taylor Koekkoek, author of Thrillville, USA

"In these exquisite and emotionally distilled stories, Jones illuminates the mysterious corners of grief and grace with poignancy and spiky humor. While wholly original, Jones's prose shares literary DNA with Mary Gaitskill, Aimee Bender, and Amy Hempel. Her explorations of sex, sorrow, and wonder are transfixing and brilliant. This is a must-read collection."
--Mary Otis, author of Yes, Yes, Cherries

"All of the stories speak to some kind of loss, and they range from typical slice of life to surreal fever dream . . . With 28 stories, some just a paragraph long, readers can stay engaged through the entirety of the collection or find their favorites to reread over and over. Short story fans might just discover their new favorite author in this arresting collection, a must-have."
--Library Journal (starred review)

"Instantly absorbing . . . The title story, the last in the collection, is a beautiful rendering of a final goodbye. This is a broad selection for those who like stories. Jones is an author to watch."
--AudioFile Magazine

"Jones' debut short story collection introduces a new, captivating voice...The Goodbye Process is not only about loss and grief, but also love and healing. It's deeply human--and a remarkable read."
--Electric Literature

"The power of the story collection creeps up slowly . . . The cumulative effect of these stories is intense, and the contrast between the understated writing and the shocking events works exceedingly well every time. Powerful, well-crafted short stories that sneak up on the reader to deliver a jolt. Our verdict: GET IT."
-Kirkus Reviews

"Original, eloquent, emotionally impacting, deftly crafted, and memorable, author Mary Jones raises each of her short stories comprising The Goodbye Process to an impressive level of literary excellence."
-Midwest Book Review

"In crafting these flashes of fiction, Mary Jones has adventured into the limits of that form, practicing with time compression, and linguistic rug pulling, and an audacious love for dialogue that feels urgent and real, down to the level of sound. I was shocked by my reactions to these stories, emotive and intellectual, and I know you will love them."
-Chris Holmes, Burned By Books

About the Author

Mary Jones's stories and essays have appeared in many journals including Electric Literature's Recommended Reading, Subtropics, EPOCH, Alaska Quarterly Review, Columbia Journal, The Hopkins Review, Gay Mag, The Normal School, Epiphany, Santa Monica Review, Brevity and elsewhere. The recipient of a summer prose fellowship from The University of Arizona Poetry Center, her work has been cited as notable in The Best American Essays and appeared in The Best Microfiction 2022. She holds an MFA from Bennington College and teaches fiction writing at UCLA Extension. Originally from Upstate New York, she lives in Los Angeles.