A masterful literary talent explores the treacherous often violent borders between war and sex love and artWith the flash of a camera one girls life is shattered and a host of others altered forever In a war-torn village in Eastern Europe an American photographer captures a heart-stopping image a young girl flying toward the lens fleeing a fiery explosion that has engulfed her home and family The image wins acclaim and prizes becoming an icon for millionsand a subject of obsession for one writer the photographers best friend who has suffered a devastating tragedy of her ownAs the writer plunges into a suicidal depression her filmmaker husband enlists several friends including a fearless bisexual poet and an ingenuous performance artist to save her by rescuing the unknown girl and bringing her to the United States And yet as their plot unfolds everything we know about the story comes into question What does the writer really want Who is controlling the action And what will happen when these two worldseast and west real and virtualcollideA fierce provocative and deeply affecting novel of both ideas and action that blends the tight construction of Julian Barness The Sense of an Ending with the emotional power of Anthony Marras A Constellation of Vital Phenomena Lidia Yuknavitchs The Small Backs of Children is a major step forward from one of our most avidly watched writers.
