In her exuberantly funny, bittersweet collection, Ellen Gilchrist offers 16 stories that delve into the vibrant lives of her signature strong-willed women. Ranging from hilarity to despair—innocent children bewildered by their elders’ behavior, a writer living on Xanax, and a socialite seeking a health cure only to find romance instead of rest—Gilchrist’s high-spirited characters always tend to find themselves in outrageous situations. The beloved and feisty Rhoda Manning returns, fighting the lure of the bottle while relentlessly going after her dream of becoming a famous writer. And while the restraint of family and society continues to haunt Gilchrist’s characters, they prove fearless and deliciously carve their own chaotic paths toward survival. Set in Fayetteville, Arkansas and New Orleans, Louisiana, the tales are artfully fashioned, providing tastes of marvelously trouble-prone people at every stage of life. Packed with humor, sexuality, and ever true to human weakness, this collection is romantic and full of passion—a treat in which readers will happily indulge. PRAISE: “The Age of Miracles is Ellen Gilchrist’s best book yet. Its comedy, irony, sexuality, inwardness, and sadness, all of it undergirded by a brave and funny sensibility, convince me anew that her work is in the first rank of American fiction today.” —Willie Morris, Author of My Dog Skip and North Towards Home “The Age of Miracles itself seems a miracle, powerfully illustrating the serenity that people sometimes develop as they age, the reward for enduring all the difficulties and disappointments of life.” —San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle “The stories in this collection are among her best.” —Miami Herald