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Your Only Best Hope

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Pub Date Aug 11 2026 | Archive Date Sep 8 2026

High Frequency Press | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles


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Description

After three decades as an established literary fiction voice seen in dozens of highly respected journals such Prairie Schooner, Confrontation, and Painted Bride Quarterly, E.G. Silverman releases Your Only Best Hope, his long-awaited debut collection of short stories 

After three decades as an established literary fiction voice seen in dozens of highly respected journals such Prairie Schooner, Confrontation, and Painted Bride Quarterly, E.G. Silverman releases ...


A Note From the Publisher

Additional Book Formats with (ISBN-13):
EPUB ISBN: 9781962931649

Additional Book Formats with (ISBN-13):
EPUB ISBN: 9781962931649


Advance Praise

"Each of these witty, moving, and morally complex stories is as rich and packed with surprises as a novel. A deeply satisfying book, and a remarkable debut."

—Brian Morton, author of Starting Out in the Evening and Tasha: A Son's Memoir

"E.G. Silverman summons my favorite short story writers—T.C. Boyle, Tobias Wolff, Raymond Carver—and it is a joy to read such an accomplished writer at the height of his powers."

—Dan Pope, author of “Housebreaking”

“Only the decision counts,” a character in one of E.G. Silverman’s stories says, a suggestion reinforced in nearly every story in Your Only Best Hope. Quality short stories are built on the tension created by difficult choices, and, in story after story, Silverman thrusts his characters toward decision-making to provide that tension.

—Gary Fincke, author of The Out-of-Sorts: Selected Stories 

"Each of these witty, moving, and morally complex stories is as rich and packed with surprises as a novel. A deeply satisfying book, and a remarkable debut."

—Brian Morton, author of Starting Out in...


Available Editions

EDITION Hardcover
ISBN 9781962931632
PRICE $25.00 (USD)
PAGES 180

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Average rating from 3 members


Featured Reviews

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Your Only Best Hope is the kind of short story collection that invites you to slow down. Each story introduces ordinary people facing decisions that don't have easy answers, and that was what kept me reading. I found myself thinking about Albert in the title story as he struggles to reconcile memories of his wife with the reality of her final illness, and I was equally drawn into stories like "Moosehead Lake" and "Sourland Pharmacy," where the biggest conflicts come from the choices people make rather than dramatic plot twists.

What I appreciated most was how human these stories felt. The characters aren't perfect, and they don't always make the right decisions, but that's exactly what made them believable. More than once I finished a story and sat with it for a few minutes before moving on to the next. That doesn't happen often with short story collections. My sincere thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free advance review copy. I was grateful for the opportunity to read this collection, and I am sharing my honest thoughts voluntarily.

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I really enjoyed getting to read these stories and how it uses the genre. Each story was so well done and was hooked from start to finish, it was written well and left me wanting more in this collection. E.G. Silverman wrote this perfectly and glad I got to read this.

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