“Explores and celebrates uncertain and transitory moments of gender identity with humor and verve.” — The New York Times Book Review
“Highlights queer, gender-nonconforming, and trans charac- ters. Most are seeking some sense of connection . . . Conklin portrays them all with warmth and compassion.” — Time
“Dazzling . . . Compulsively readable.” — Emma Specter, Vogue
“For far too long, queer, trans and non-binary people have been massively underrepresented in American fiction. Debut author Lydia Conklin aims to change that with their beau- tiful short story collection. The stories here tackle complex issues of identity and self-discovery with sometimes heart- breaking insight; Conklin doesn’t shy away from addressing their characters’ often painful journeys. This is an absolute triumph of a book.” — Michael Schaub, NPR, A Best Book of the Year
“Gleefully queer . . . Rainbow Rainbow weaves between hope and despair, love and fear as its characters—a lesbian com- ics artist, a sex addict, a trans vlogger, various teenagers coming-of-age (and into their sexuality)—wrestle with the fraught dynamics of gender identity and queer romance in the 21st century.” — Lauren Puckett-Pope, Elle
“Effervescent . . . Conklin’s compassionate stories are so accomplished and sure-footed that you’ll be shocked to learn this is their debut.” —Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire
“Dazzlingly immersive . . . There is darkness and shadow here alongside humor and wit. The characters feel alive as Conklin expertly navigates the tricky, awkward, beautiful, and horrifying moments that life will always present. Rainbow Rainbow is playful at the same time that it poses existential questions of morality, truth, good, bad, and everything in between.” — Sarah Neilson, Shondaland
“Lydia Conklin’s fiction will leave you grateful, twisted, and breathless in the very best way. Every time.” — Alissa Nutting, Electric Literature
“Lydia Conklin writes with humor and tenderness about the way we love now. Rainbow Rainbow is an impressive and beautiful collection.” — Lorrie Moore, author of Bark
“What a gorgeous ode to queer life in all its awkward, tragic, hilarious, erotic, and joyful forms! I savored each one of these stories, laughed and gasped aloud, and marveled at their pitch-perfect dialogue and masterful sentences. Lydia Conklin’s debut collection offers one of the strongest new voices in recent memory and one that is certain to belong in the canon of contemporary queer literature.” — Melissa Febos, author of Girlhood
“Rainbow Rainbow is a debut that many of us have long been waiting for. The sentences in this collection leap off the page with delightfully vivid animation, and the queer and trans characters in each story take journeys that cover a breathtak- ing range of emotional distance. Lydia Conklin, above all, understands the power of humor, to surprise and tickle us, to regale and disarm us, and, in the end, to devastate us with truths that are full of mystery and melancholy.” — Jamel Brinkley, author of A Lucky Man
“Rainbow Rainbow is a triumph, and Lydia Conklin is a mar- vel. Each story is full of wonder and trouble. I felt as if I knew these characters, recognized them in all their queer com- plexity, missed them when the book was done.” — Justin Torres, author of We the Animals
“If you’ve already had the great luck of reading Lydia Conklin’s fiction, you know their work to be dazzling and indelible. Now, at last, their stories about queer, trans, and gender nonconforming people have been brought together in this radiant collection you’ll want to revisit again and again. A book for the ages.” — R.O. Kwon, author of The Incendiaries
“If you dig queer stories, these are the queerest of the queer! Full of joy, nerve and verve, this debut collection is a stunner.” — Karla Strand, Ms.
“Delightful . . . Expect to cry and laugh at these unlikely tales of humanity.” — Maybelle Morgan, Refinery29
“At times funny, at times sexy, and at times downright uncom- fortable . . . A sharply drawn collection in which many will no doubt find not just an entertaining and compelling read, but kinship and clarity.” — Dahlia Adler, BuzzFeed
“Conklin introduces themself as a writer to watch with these open-eyed, tenderhearted, well-crafted stories.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“This talented writer is brimming with skills and heart.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
