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WINNER OF THE BBC NATIONAL SHORT STORY AWARD
'Terrifically exciting . . . It's a beautiful, electrifying thing to witness - a writer so hilariously and so reasonably voicing the unspeakable'
Sarah Hall
'I laughed and winced at these witty, shrewd stories . . . Hats off to Naomi Wood'
Reeta Chakrabarti
'Every story is glorious - full of dark mischief, so funny and unexpected and original. Brilliant'
Emma Healey
In my life, I had always been a good woman; controlling what it was that I wanted. But recently, I had started to notice my bad energy, and I began to follow it, wondering where it would take me . . .
A woman has an unexpected outburst at a corporate therapy session for working mothers. A couple find some long-overdue time to rekindle their relationship and make an ill-advised home movie. A pregnant film director plots revenge on the actress who betrayed her. An ex-wife deliberately causes conflict at her ex-husband's wedding.
This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things illuminates the lives of malicious, subversive and untamed women. Exploring failed sisterhood, dubious parenting and the dark side of modern love, this powerful and funny collection exposes how society wants women to behave, and shows what happens when they refuse.
Genre: Literary Fiction
'Terrifically exciting . . . It's a beautiful, electrifying thing to witness - a writer so hilariously and so reasonably voicing the unspeakable'
Sarah Hall
'I laughed and winced at these witty, shrewd stories . . . Hats off to Naomi Wood'
Reeta Chakrabarti
'Every story is glorious - full of dark mischief, so funny and unexpected and original. Brilliant'
Emma Healey
In my life, I had always been a good woman; controlling what it was that I wanted. But recently, I had started to notice my bad energy, and I began to follow it, wondering where it would take me . . .
A woman has an unexpected outburst at a corporate therapy session for working mothers. A couple find some long-overdue time to rekindle their relationship and make an ill-advised home movie. A pregnant film director plots revenge on the actress who betrayed her. An ex-wife deliberately causes conflict at her ex-husband's wedding.
This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things illuminates the lives of malicious, subversive and untamed women. Exploring failed sisterhood, dubious parenting and the dark side of modern love, this powerful and funny collection exposes how society wants women to behave, and shows what happens when they refuse.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"Humane and very funny, a story that understands out emotional and intellectual storms, and the generosity we are capable of that will keep us all afloat." - Jessie Burton
"Sharp and fresh and painful and funny, these are clever and illuminating stories about contemporary motherhood. There's great pleasure to be found in these spiky women giving sarcastic retorts to their fragmented lives, and solidarity in their loneliness, and the ways that society and its structures have let them down." - Lucy Caldwell
"How terrifically exciting to see Naomi Wood flourish in the short story form. It seems the perfect vehicle for her wit, intelligence, mischief and levity. These stories absolutely nail the experiences of women rebelling in worlds calibrated to restrict and undernourish them. They skewer modern parenting, maternity, romance, and morality. It's a beautiful, electrifying thing to witness - a writer so hilariously and so reasonably voicing the unspeakable." - Sarah Hall
"I can't stop thinking about this book, it's almost too good. Wood's prose is delicious, deceptively readable and profoundly unnerving. This is dangerous writing; it glitters. Read it and riot." - Marianne Levy
"A whip-smart, funny, and pitch-perfect collection of stories about flawed and complex women we actually recognise. This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things is literary fiction at its best, and Naomi Wood a writer at the top of her game." - Christie Watson
"Every story in this book feels perfect in a different way. Very sharp and very funny . . . I loved it." - David Whitehouse
"Sharp and fresh and painful and funny, these are clever and illuminating stories about contemporary motherhood. There's great pleasure to be found in these spiky women giving sarcastic retorts to their fragmented lives, and solidarity in their loneliness, and the ways that society and its structures have let them down." - Lucy Caldwell
"How terrifically exciting to see Naomi Wood flourish in the short story form. It seems the perfect vehicle for her wit, intelligence, mischief and levity. These stories absolutely nail the experiences of women rebelling in worlds calibrated to restrict and undernourish them. They skewer modern parenting, maternity, romance, and morality. It's a beautiful, electrifying thing to witness - a writer so hilariously and so reasonably voicing the unspeakable." - Sarah Hall
"I can't stop thinking about this book, it's almost too good. Wood's prose is delicious, deceptively readable and profoundly unnerving. This is dangerous writing; it glitters. Read it and riot." - Marianne Levy
"A whip-smart, funny, and pitch-perfect collection of stories about flawed and complex women we actually recognise. This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things is literary fiction at its best, and Naomi Wood a writer at the top of her game." - Christie Watson
"Every story in this book feels perfect in a different way. Very sharp and very funny . . . I loved it." - David Whitehouse
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Used availability for Naomi Wood's This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things