{"product_id":"how-to-wrestle-a-girl-venita-blackburn-9780374602796","title":"How to Wrestle a Girl: Stories","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eParis Review \u003c\/i\u003eStaff Pick and an Amazon Editors' Pick. Finalist for the\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e 2022 Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction and the \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eErnest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, and longlisted for the \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e2022 Joyce Carol Oates Prize.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Bold, witty, ominous and vulnerable . . . \u003ci\u003eHow to Wrestle a Girl\u003c\/i\u003e shines in its propensity to magnify small moments, challenge our presumptions and dissect the beauty, danger and wonder of girlhood.\" --\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHilarious, tough, and tender stories from a farseeing star on the rise \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eVenita Blackburn's characters bully and suffer, spit and tease, mope and blame. They're hyperaware of their bodies and fiercely observant, fending off the failures and advances of adults with indifferent ease. In \"Biology Class,\" they torment a teacher to the point of near insanity, while in \"Bear Bear Harvest(TM),\" they prepare to sell their excess fat and skin for food processing. Stark and sharp, hilarious and ominous, these pieces are scabbed, bruised, and prone to scarring. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMany of the stories, set in Southern California, follow a teenage girl in the aftermath of her beloved father's death and capture her sister's and mother's encounters with men of all ages, as well as the girl's budding attraction to her best friend, Esperanza. In and out of school, participating in wrestling and softball, attending church with her hysterically complicated family, and dominating boys in arm wrestling, she grapples with her burgeoning queerness and her emerging body, becoming wary of clarity rather than hoping for it. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA rising star, Blackburn is a trailblazing stylist, and in \u003ci\u003eHow to Wrestle a Girl \u003c\/i\u003eshe masterfully shakes loose a vision of girlhood that is raw, vulnerable, and never at ease.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Venita Blackburn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0374602794\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780374602796\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e MCD X Fsg Originals\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/07\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 224\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.38lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.55h x 5.14w x 0.63d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/15\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/12\/2021 pg. 41\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 08\/01\/2021 pg. 22","brand":"Venita Blackburn","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44055131619583,"sku":"9780374602796","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_b728c2f7-8bbb-45c7-84c6-d6d8eae64de2.jpg?v=1685033967","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/how-to-wrestle-a-girl-venita-blackburn-9780374602796","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}