SHORTLISTED FOR THE EDGE HILL PRIZE

Almost-true stories for a post-truth world

Wrong! Not Nice! Sad!

A Manhattan party on election night. Liberal media types gather with big grins and high-end canapés to watch the Trump-Clinton results come in, expecting a smooth victory for Hillary. As the outcome shifts and they descend into panic, the host stands abruptly before her guests, confessing a shocking crime of years before.
What follows is a series of witty, cutting, addictive tales of Trump times, portraying Democrats and Republicans in a divided America, from powerful to powerless, angry to thwarted, from a Starbucks barista who dreams of making it on the stage, to a couple whose online date goes bitterly awry, to a charmingly wicked U.S. businessman living undercover in rural Italy. Basket of Deplorables is a timely take on the craziness of today: almost-true fiction for a post-truth world.

"Inventive and amusing . . . Irresistible, like a blend of Roald Dahl's short fiction, Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror series and David Foster Wallace's Brief Interviews with Hideous Men . . . Once today's news has become tomorrow's online archive, this will be the one still worth reading" - Times Literary Supplement

"These five linked stories share the same deft characterisation, buoyant wit and imaginative richness of Rachman's lauded novels . . . Prescient and clever and it is a quick and delightful read." - Evening Standard

"Rachman's masterful collection provides an early literary look at Trump-era America . . . Slick, entertaining hot takes from a former journalist sacrifice nothing in sophistication despite their speedy turnaround . . . Superbly choreographed . . . These bang-up-to-the-minute stories feel like essential reading as we get to grips with a bizarre new era" - Guardian

"Rachman has delivered a survey of contemporary America with a dash of sci-fi that disses liberal snowflakes and triumphalist Trumpsters alike . . . addressing the post-truth world. Rachman is also astute about how dependent we have become on the technology that now feeds us fake news and distraction" - i Paper

"Diverting and satisfying tales, laced with just the right amount of caustic wit" - Sunday Herald

"Tom Rachman paints the post-truth world in broad brushstrokes . . . Spry observations of (mostly) larger-than-life characters who represent the angry, bewildered citizens of a divided America" - Daily Mail

"Rachman is a clever and compelling writer with a terrific turn of phrase and his finger on the pulse of our fast-changing world. These stories are a pleasure to read from start to finish" - Jewish Chronicle

"A neat web of morality tales about dating, faking and going online in post-truth America . . . Brilliantly savage and satirical . . . Rather than a basket of deplorables, he gives us a gallery of grotesques, whose comedy rests on the corruption of their communication. Talk is Rachman's medium, and his talkers maintain perfect pitch throughout." - Oldie

"Clever wit, sharp observation, and a thread linking them all . . . You'll love this . . . and you'll have a good laugh" - Sunday Sport

"Terrifically good. Just read them in one swoop." - India Knight

"The premise is a terrific one . . . Rachman's deft cultural references and his acute skewering of American culture make for uncomfortably precise satire" - Atlantic

"Rachman's fictional short stories somehow provide much comfort and understanding in a bonkers era . . . This might well be the first literary example of "When life gives you lemons..."" - Emerald Street