Ten masterworks of short fiction—by turns tender, comic, powerful, and devastating—from the highly praised author of The Madonnas of Leningrad

A surprised Southern matriarch is confronted by her family at an intervention. … A life-altering break-in triggers insomniac introspection in a desperate actor. … Streetwise New York City neighbors let down their guard for a naïve puppeteer and must suffer the consequences. . . .

In this stunning collection of short stories—five of which are being published for the very first time—bestselling, award-winning author Debra Dean displays the depth and magnitude of her extraordinary literary talent. Replete with the seamless storytelling and captivating lyrical voice that made her debut novel, The Madonnas of Leningrad, a national bestseller, Dean’s Confessions of a Falling Woman is a haunting, satisfying, and unforgettable reading experience.

Praise for Debra Dean’s critically acclaimed bestseller The Madonnas of Leningrad

“[A] heartfelt debut. … Admirably humane.” —New York Times Book Review

“An unforgettable story of love, survival, and the power of imagination in the most tragic circumstances. Elegant and poetic, the rare kind of book that you want to keep but you have to share.”—Isabel Allende

“[Dean’s] descriptive passages and dialogue are painteresque and exquisitely drawn.” —USA Today

“This sumptuously elegant and emotionally moving first novel . . . will linger with you long after you’ve finished it. … Exhilarating fiction . . . luminous and lovely throughout.”—Providence Journal

“Rare is the novel that creates that blissful forgot-you-were-reading experience. This sort of transcendence is rarer still when the novel in question is an author’s debut, but that is precisely what Debra Dean has achieved.”—Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“Dean writes with passion and compelling drama.”—People