Florida

Everyday life in the stories Lauren Groff collects is edged by sinkholes, snakes and storms, though the deeper dangers are emotional and psychological. A prowling panther or a sexual secret can upset a family retreat. The characters include two resourceful abandoned sisters, a lonely boy seen again as a grown man, a restless childless couple, a homeless woman and a recurring figure, a conflicted, steely wife and mother. The stories cross towns, decades and even centuries, held together by Florida itself: its climate, landscape, history and state of mind. Groff writes about loneliness, rage, family and time. The collection won the Story Prize and was a National Book Award finalist.

Barack Obama listed it among his best books of 2018 in a Facebook post.