From a fresh voice in American literature, in the tradition of Barry Hannah and Lucia Berlin, comes a linked collection of short stories inspired by the author’s Pennsylvania hometown that interrogates the rural-urban divide with warmth, wry humor, and welcome audacity

Hicksters explores the lives of people straddling disparate worlds: urban and rural, addicted and sober, analog and digital. A recovering addict debates whether to share her Suboxone with her wayward daughter. A heartsick young woman returns home and makes a move on her old science teacher. An adjunct professor spars with a red-pilled student, two buddies leverage hipster foodways to get laid, and a broke phone-sex worker contends with the aftermath of an insurance scam gone wrong.

With an impetuous style, a clear-eyed love for Appalachia, and plenty of shade for liberal piety, these stories illuminate contemporary rural life and challenge the urban gaze through which it is viewed. In Hicksters, Jake Maynard delivers an irreverent, provocative, and deeply felt collection that leads us toward a fuller understanding of Rust Belt America.