We Sinners

"A subtly rendered and powerfully empathetic portrait of a contemporary fundamentalist Christian family by a deeply gifted young writer, Hanna Pylväinen's We Sinners is not only beautiful and heartbreaking, it is important-for what it says about faith, family, and for the humane light it sheds on the cultural fissures that affect every American. This is a book that reminds the reader, on every page, of the uniquely illuminating power of fiction."-Meghan O'Rourke, author of The Long Goodbye

"Swift, absorbing, plainspoken, sincere. This book is an account of an excruciating dilemma: what to do with the family faith if you don't believe it anymore? We Sinners spares no one, least of all the skeptics who have broken from the church and its austerities only to find themselves "freed from nothing," confessing in a parking lot, "I don't know how to live," and watching the people still inside the fold with undisguised admiration and love. An elegant and penetrating book."-Salvatore Scibona, author of The End

"In a début collection of dazzling economy, precision, and reach, Hanna Pylväinen explores a familiar yet unfamiliar world-a distinct culture of amazing power-from the points of view of ten different family members with immense sensitivity to her characters, and a surprisingly light, deft touch."-Jaimy Gordon, author of National Book Award Winner Lord of Misrule

"Pylväinen draws us close to the characters in her little-known denomination, and then, just as their lives become poignantly familiar, her austerely beautiful prose tilts the everyday towards a quiet profundity. These are stories of a faith, to be sure, but also of faith more broadly-faith in family, in community, in ourselves-and of the challenges that beset it. The book itself is a testament to yet another faith: in the abiding power of fiction to illuminate our lives. We Sinners is one of the most distinctive debuts in years, and marks the arrival of a talent to cherish."-Peter Ho Davies, author of The Welsh Girl

"In her brilliant, kaleidoscopic family portrait, Hanna Pylvainen explores with unusual insight the territory of love and faith. She has a great gift for delving into the inner life of each character, but the real wonder is the resonant whole shaped from the finely textured pieces."-Andrea Barrett, author of the National Book Award winning Ship Fever and The Air We Breathe