“Midnight Bowling is a terrific novel, not only a page turner, but a substantial piece of love-work. The characters are persons, not characters. The place is place, not setting. The story is convincing, sometimes scary, and often heartwarming. But it is bowling that holds the narrative together. When I felt the power of the sport take hold of me, I knew the book was a solid triumph.”
— Fred Chappell, author I Am One Of You Forever and Familiars
“Quinn Dalton gives us fascinating insights about bowling in this excellent novel, but she knows just as much about love’s complexities, particularly between fathers and their children. Midnight Bowling rings true as a perfect strike.“
— Ron Rash, author of the New York Times bestseller Serena and The World Made Straight
The flat-out perfectly drawn characters in Stories from the Afterlife will stick to me in much the same manner as Richard Ford’s and Raymond Carver’s. Please, please buy this collection if, indeed, you’ve ever contemplated ditching your job to work as a stripper; felt guilty for impregnating the nursemaid; wondered how you’d react in a beer cooler with a pistol in your face; or contemplated holy men in a hardware aisle. Want to know what can happen from a one-night stand? You’ll get this answer, plus. These stories are lyrical, complete, stunning, and unforgettable.
— George Singleton, author of Work Shirts For Madmen
Stories from the Afterlife showcases Dalton’s great skills as a writer as well as her acute understanding of human nature. The intricate patterns she weaves around her characters are rich in detail and history and compassion. Their lives—these stories—are filled with loss and longing and yet they are also triumphant as they shine light on those small victories that allow people to survive. Stories from the Afterlife is a moving and compelling collection.
— Jill McCorkle, author of Creatures of Habit and Carolina Moon
Stories from the Afterlife is a raw, brave collection, punctuated with surprising moments of tenderness and hope. Dalton writes with the eye of an artist and the precision of a poet.
— Valerie Ann Leff, author of Better Homes and Husbands
Quinn Dalton burrows so deeply into the hearts and psyches of her characters that, while reading her work, one has the unshakable feeling that she has rifled through our own secret thoughts, revealing our very own fears and desires. Stories from the Afterlife is jam-packed with Dalton’s brilliance and proves, once again, that she deserves recognition as a master in the realm of contemporary American letters.
— Julianna Baggott, author of Girl Talk and The Madam
— George Singleton, author of Work Shirts For Madmen
Stories from the Afterlife showcases Dalton’s great skills as a writer as well as her acute understanding of human nature. The intricate patterns she weaves around her characters are rich in detail and history and compassion. Their lives—these stories—are filled with loss and longing and yet they are also triumphant as they shine light on those small victories that allow people to survive. Stories from the Afterlife is a moving and compelling collection.
— Jill McCorkle, author of Creatures of Habit and Carolina Moon
Stories from the Afterlife is a raw, brave collection, punctuated with surprising moments of tenderness and hope. Dalton writes with the eye of an artist and the precision of a poet.
— Valerie Ann Leff, author of Better Homes and Husbands
Quinn Dalton burrows so deeply into the hearts and psyches of her characters that, while reading her work, one has the unshakable feeling that she has rifled through our own secret thoughts, revealing our very own fears and desires. Stories from the Afterlife is jam-packed with Dalton’s brilliance and proves, once again, that she deserves recognition as a master in the realm of contemporary American letters.
— Julianna Baggott, author of Girl Talk and The Madam
“Quinn Dalton is that rare being, a writer who combines fierce passion and keen intelligence. Both are amply present in the far-ranging stories of this splendid collection.”—Margot Livesey, author of Banishing Verona
“Bulletproof Girl is a smart, subtle, delightful book. Dalton has written a marvelous first collection about what happens when, inevitably, the world’s slings and arrows pierce that false and flimsy vest.”— Michael Griffith, author of Bibliophilia
“With prose as precise and elegant as calculus, Quinn Dalton’s Bulletproof Girlportrays tough, tender women struggling through the puzzles of modern life. Her vision is unflinching and always surprising. These stories gleam.”— Karl Iagnemma, author of On the Nature of Human Romantic Interaction
“Brilliant, wild, scathing, hilarious – these deeply psychological stories of our contemporary world are essential reading. Dalton is one of the most enthralling short story writers of her generation.”— Julianna Baggott, author of Girl Talk, The Miss America Family and The Madam
“A quietly moving debut novel.”
—Booklist
“Dalton’s prose [is like] a Lucinda Williams song: full of sass, sexual tension, and dive-bar cool.”
—The News & Record
“Dalton is an evocative writer…genuinely funny. She has a knack for pulling off the delightfully unexpected detail, and she keeps her story moving forward at an easy, pleasing pace. Expect more good work from Dalton.”
—Cleveland Plain Dealer
“The main character in High Strung is incredibly likeable. Worried that she’s like her mother, the underfed, sexually exhausted, pornographically overwhelmed London-dwelling adult-novel editor moves to Ohio, which she discovers is not boring but crazy in a whole new way.”
—The Kansas City Pitch Weekly
“A biting and witty story.”
—Akron Beacon Journal
“High Strung deals a dish best served with charm…it tickles the throat on the way down.”
—Tampa Tribune
“Finally, a novel for the nicotine-addled lip-biter in every woman. Relax, read, and let Dalton do your worrying for you.”
–Erika Krouse, author of Come Up and See Me Sometime
“Dalton’s characters captured me with their quirky audacity. In their fierce drive to connect, difficult truths result. Her characters love each other imperfectly-the best way they know how. High Strung is infused with the absurdities of contemporary culture, and the fallout of political adventuring in a divided country; the combination makes Dalton’s novel a timely and important debut.”
–Elizabeth Oness, author of Articles of Faith, winner of the Iowa Short Fiction Award
“Quinn Dalton exposes the hole in the emotional landscape of new-century America and fills it with sharp, discerning prose. Loss is the mortar sealing past to present in her protagonist’s personal history; hope resides in the beauty of the writing. Dalton is a writer to look out for.”
–Nancy Zafris, fiction editor of The Kenyon Review and author of The Metal Shredders
“High Strung is a family drama with kinky edges, and Quinn Dalton’s deft handling of the bombastic, outrageous and poignant is a remarkable achievement. Readers everywhere will cheer Merle Winslow as she learns no matter where we go, we can’t escape where we came from.”
–Lynn Pruett, author of Ruby River
—Booklist
“Dalton’s prose [is like] a Lucinda Williams song: full of sass, sexual tension, and dive-bar cool.”
—The News & Record
“Dalton is an evocative writer…genuinely funny. She has a knack for pulling off the delightfully unexpected detail, and she keeps her story moving forward at an easy, pleasing pace. Expect more good work from Dalton.”
—Cleveland Plain Dealer
“The main character in High Strung is incredibly likeable. Worried that she’s like her mother, the underfed, sexually exhausted, pornographically overwhelmed London-dwelling adult-novel editor moves to Ohio, which she discovers is not boring but crazy in a whole new way.”
—The Kansas City Pitch Weekly
“A biting and witty story.”
—Akron Beacon Journal
“High Strung deals a dish best served with charm…it tickles the throat on the way down.”
—Tampa Tribune
“Finally, a novel for the nicotine-addled lip-biter in every woman. Relax, read, and let Dalton do your worrying for you.”
–Erika Krouse, author of Come Up and See Me Sometime
“Dalton’s characters captured me with their quirky audacity. In their fierce drive to connect, difficult truths result. Her characters love each other imperfectly-the best way they know how. High Strung is infused with the absurdities of contemporary culture, and the fallout of political adventuring in a divided country; the combination makes Dalton’s novel a timely and important debut.”
–Elizabeth Oness, author of Articles of Faith, winner of the Iowa Short Fiction Award
“Quinn Dalton exposes the hole in the emotional landscape of new-century America and fills it with sharp, discerning prose. Loss is the mortar sealing past to present in her protagonist’s personal history; hope resides in the beauty of the writing. Dalton is a writer to look out for.”
–Nancy Zafris, fiction editor of The Kenyon Review and author of The Metal Shredders
“High Strung is a family drama with kinky edges, and Quinn Dalton’s deft handling of the bombastic, outrageous and poignant is a remarkable achievement. Readers everywhere will cheer Merle Winslow as she learns no matter where we go, we can’t escape where we came from.”
–Lynn Pruett, author of Ruby River