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      Banal Nightmare

      by Halle Butler
      Published
      Jul 2024
      Main Genre
      Literary Literary
      Rating
      Pages
      336
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      About This Book

      A "vividly, chillingly current" (The Washington Post) novel by the author of The New Me, one of the boldest voices in American fiction

      "[Halle Butler's] talent lies in depicting how these sore winners think, and the quiet madness that comes from measuring every interaction in your life by what might be gained in power and status. . . . [Banal Nightmare is] her most accomplished novel." —The New York Review of Books

      "So funny, so smart, utterly vicious—just brilliant."—Zadie Smith

      "Butler has crafted a novel in which every character proves to be completely, uniquely crazy. Her perverse sense of humor should be studied and celebrated."—David Sedaris

      A NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

      In a Midwestern college town at the height of the Me Too era, a group of simultaneously self-flagellating and self-aggrandizing pseudo-academics sit around, think, and send one another insulting emails. As the impulses and memories they have barely managed to repress begin to surface, their relationships become increasingly deranged. Banal Nightmare captures the volatile, surreal, and entirely disorienting atmosphere of the modern era.

      Genres & Themes

      Genres

      General Fiction

      Subgenres

      Literary Women's Fiction

      Themes

      Comedy / Humor

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      Formats & Editions

      Browse the different covers, formats, and publication history for this title.

      Paperback

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      Trade Paperback
      Sep 2025 Random House ISBN 0593730364
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      Hardcover

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      Hardcover
      First Edition Jul 2024 Random House ISBN 0593730356
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      eBook

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      eBook
      Jul 2024 Random House ISBN 0593730372
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      eBook
      Jul 2024 -- Not Selected ISBN B0CL65F9TS
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      eBook
      Jul 2024 Weidenfeld & Nicolson ISBN 1399618245
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      Audio

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      Audible
      Jul 2024 -- Not Selected ISBN B0CNFJ6VYV
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