YZ Chin is the winner of the Louise Meriwether First Book Prize, an initiative begun by the Feminist Press and TAYO Literary Magazine to lift up women writers of color. Called “complex and intimate” by prize judge Ana Castillo, this debut examines the tension between individual motivation and globalizing circumstance.
Training School for Negro Girls by Camille Acker
In her debut short story collection, Camille Acker unleashes the irony and tragic comedy of respectability onto a wide-ranging cast of characters, all of whom call Washington, DC, home. A “woke” millennial tries to fight gentrification, only to learn she’s part of the problem; a grade school teacher dreams of a better DC, only to take out her frustrations on her students; and a young piano player wins a competition, only to learn the prize is worthless.
Ultimately, they are confronted with the fact that respectability does not equal freedom. Instead, they must learn to trust their own conflicted judgment and fight to create their own sense of space and self.
Love War Stories by Ivelisse Rodriguez
Puerto Rican girls are raised to want one thing: true love. Yet they are brought up by women whose lives are marked by broken promises, grief, and betrayal. While some believe that they’ll be the ones to finally make it work, others swear not to repeat cycles of violence. This collection documents how these “love wars” break out across generations as individuals find themselves caught in the crosshairs of romance, expectations, and community.
More Contemporary Fiction from the Feminist Press
La Bastarda by Trifonia Melibea Obono, translated by Lawrence Schimel
Black Wave by Michelle Tea
Fade Into You by Nikki Darling
Give It to Me by Ana Castillo
Go Home! edited by Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
Into the Go-Slow by Bridgett M. Davis
Love War Stories by Ivelisse Rodriguez
Maggie Terry by Sarah Schulman
Pretty Things by Virginie Despentes, translated by Emma Ramadan
Since I Laid My Burden Down by Brontez Purnell
Though I Get Home by YZ Chin
Training School for Negro Girls by Camille Acker
We Were Witches by Ariel Gore
The Feminist Press is a nonprofit educational organization founded to amplify feminist voices. FP publishes classic and new writing from around the world, creates cutting-edge programs, and elevates silenced and marginalized voices in order to support personal transformation and social justice for all people.
See our complete list of books at
feministpress.org
Living on the Borderlines Page 19
