“A kooky treasure, rooted in the deeply literary, slightly askew interior world that makes this author’s work so fine.”

“A heart-forward and perfectly comic starting-over novel, REAL LIFE AND OTHER FICTIONS shows that when you stop searching so hard for certain answers to explain your life, different questions can emerge that reveal the past, present, and future in new and slightly surreal ways. Susan Coll’s Cassie is almost every dog-loving woman of a certain age: deeply annoyed, intensely curious, slightly impulsive, and forever hopeful. What an absolute delight.”

“Susan Coll is a master of comic fiction, delivering the perfect balance of humor and heart in this deliciously funny book about grief, secrets, and the stories we tell each other and ourselves to survive. Real Life and Other Fictions is the charming, warmhearted novel you’re looking for!”

“Don’t be fooled by Susan Coll’s delightful new novel. You may think you’re reading a snappy rom com with a wacky heroine and an adorable puppy stranded in a town depicted with Nabokovian humor, but Real Life and Other Fictions slyly leads us to ponder essential questions: How do we make sense of the inexplicable? What damage is wrought by silence? Can we change our lives?”

“Real Life and Other Fictions is that rare jewel of a story: one that both entertains and enlightens, one that makes pandemonium profound. Susan Coll is a literary alchemist—a writer who combines comedy and calamity and turns it into storytelling gold.”