From the winner of the 2016 Flannery O'Connor Award for Short
Fiction comes a "heartwarming and sharp-witted debut" (Publishers
Weekly, starred review) set over one emotionally charged weekend at
an animal sanctuary in western Kansas, where maternal, romantic,
and community bonds are tested in the wake of an estranged
daughter's homecoming. The Bright Side Sanctuary for Animals is in
trouble. It's late 2016 when Ariel discovers that her mother Mona's
animal sanctuary in Western Kansas has not only been the target of
anti-Semitic hate crimes--but that it's also for sale, due to
hidden financial ruin. Ariel, living a new life in progressive
Lawrence, and estranged from her mother for six long years, knows
she has to return to her childhood home--especially since her own
past may have played a role in the attack on the sanctuary. Ariel
expects tension, maybe even fury, but she doesn't anticipate that
her first love, a ranch hand named Gideon, will still be working at
Bright Side. Back in Lawrence, Ariel's charming but hapless fiance,
Dex, grows paranoid about her sudden departure. After uncovering
Mona's address, he sets out to confront Ariel, but instead finds
her grappling with the life she's abandoned. Amid the reparations
with her mother, it's clear that Ariel is questioning the meaning
of her life in Lawrence, and whether she belongs with Dex or
someone else, somewhere else. Acclaimed writer Pam Houston says
that "Mandelbaum is wise beyond her years and twice as talented,"
and The Bright Side Sanctuary for Animals poignantly explores the
unique love and tension between mothers and daughters, and humans
and animals alike. "A story of reconciliation and forgiveness (and
so many animals)" (Steven Rowley, bestselling author of Lily and
the Octopus), Mandelbaum's debut offers a panoramic view of the
meaning of home and reminds us that love provides refuge, and
underscores our similarities as human beings, no matter how alone
or far apart we may feel.
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