Her Body and Other Parties: Stories- Carmen Maria Machado

Carmen Maria Machado writes terrifying horror stories. She writes gorgeous meditations on nature, love, and art. She writes feminist allegory that would make Margaret Atwood proud and folktale adaptations that wouldn’t be out of place in the Brothers Grimm. And here’s the thing – she does it all at once. Every story in Her Body and Other Parties (Graywolf, $16) is a mind-bending mix of ideas and influences, and every one of them feels brand new. The magic of fiction is to take what we know and make it new, and Machado works that magic repeatedly and seamlessly. Her stories are a pleasure to read, even when they make the hair stand on the back of your neck. It’s always the good kind of fear.