Recognition

Description:

Probing racial tensions, illusions of success, and self-discovery, Recognition features an eclectic cast of Black American and Afro-Latine characters. With lyrical language and sharp observations, these stories closely examine and incisively skewer American culture, building a complex and resonant network of connections, longings, and missed opportunities.

A St. Louis woman tries to reconcile a fragmented identity by hunting down her brother's murderer. A young wrestler in Arizona faces his fiercest competitor yet. A project manager at a marketing firm meets a male recruit who looks just like her. A sensitive young woman in Florida is locked in a psychiatric ward isolation room. A Puerto Rican woman risks everything to come to the United States.

Jennifer Maritza McCauley writes across genres and genders with a poetic style that jumps off the page and characters who feel as though they could walk into the room as you read. This powerful collection of stories, with heartache and joy both hidden and exposed, is filled with nuance and rewards.

Brief description:

Jennifer Maritza McCauley, a multi-genre writer, is the author of Scar On / Scar Off, When Trying to Return Home, Neon Steel, and Kinds of Grace as well as the forthcoming books Versus, Tumbao, and The Imaginary. She has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, Kimbilio, and CantoMundo and her work has been named a New York Times Editors' Choice; a Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction Book of the Year; and a Must-Read by Elle, Latinx in Publishing, Ms. Magazine, and Southern Review of Books. She serves as faculty at the Yale Writers' Workshop and is an assistant professor of English at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Review Quotes:

"Recognition is a tremendous work that incisively dissects racism and its deleterious effects on people who simply want to live their lives. Each story weaves an affective, heartbreaking web, and each character is carefully and sensitively drawn such that they jump off the page. An incredibly powerful collection that often let me with my mouth open, holding my aching heart."