{"product_id":"the-outer-country-davin-malasarn-9780593731659","title":"The Outer Country","description":"\u003cb\u003eThis tender, elegant debut examines the struggle of keeping a family together when secrets threaten to pull it apart. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Both a book of demons and a book of uncommon grace; an instant classic in the queer canon. Davin Malasarn is an exquisite writer of the heart.\"--Justin Torres, author of \u003ci\u003eBlackouts\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEstranged sisters Manda and Siripon have not seen each other in years when Manda travels to Los Angeles for the birth of Siripon's son, Ben. The women have lived separate lives since they were teenagers in Phet Buri, Thailand, when their parents decided to send one of their children to America, the foreign land they call \"the Outer Country.\" As the eldest and the protector of her younger siblings, Manda assumed she would be the first to go. To her shock, their parents chose Siripon, the reliable, obedient second child instead. With one parental choice, the sisters became rivals. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFollowing their cool separation across continents, the sisters reunite to raise Ben. Manda, outrunning a devastating tragedy from her past, becomes a second mother to him, an only child who fills her with fierce joy. But as Ben grows increasingly effeminate, that joy turns to fear. Believing that the spirit of a woman has attached itself to her beloved nephew - and that her sister won't do what has to be done to fix matters - Manda secretly arranges a Buddhist exorcism for him. The ceremony sets off a decade of anxiety-induced vomiting, with Ben becoming the object of torment and bullying at school, even as his memory of the ritual fades into early childhood oblivion. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs Ben grows into his own queer self-becoming, he must confront the scars of his exorcism and learn how to live amidst the family damage, where one has to tread softly. But how long can a family go on with secrets so large pressing on their chests? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFrom the mangrove forests of Phet Buri to a modest stucco bungalow in Los Angeles to the ivy and sandstone quadrangles of Stanford, \u003ci\u003eThe Outer Country\u003c\/i\u003e is at once epic and intimate in scope, a breathtaking journey across borders and generations.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Davin Malasarn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0593731654\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780593731659\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e One World\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/05\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.25lbs","brand":"Davin Malasarn","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":47419817132287,"sku":"9780593731659","price":28.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_ca86c3c1-771e-477b-b20c-60f375dbeb16.jpg?v=1761514032","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-outer-country-davin-malasarn-9780593731659","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}