Post-Traumatic: Utterly compelling literary fiction about survival, hope and second chances

Vivian is a complex heroine in Chantal V. Johnson's debut novel, Post-Traumatic, who is blazingly, indelibly alive. She is self-aware and lost, cutting and wounded, resilient and vulnerable, and struggles with the memories and after-effects of her bad childhood. After a family reunion, she finds herself alone and starts to unravel. The book is a new kind of survivor narrative that brims with warmth, laughter, and hope.

Format: Hardback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 07 April 2022
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group

Vivian is a truly captivating character in contemporary fiction. She is self-aware, lost, cutting, wounded, resilient, and vulnerable, all the misfit bits that make up a whole human being. Reading Post-Traumatic feels like an illicit thrill.

Dawnie Walton, the author of The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, has crafted a story that is both captivating and thought-provoking. The question on everyone's mind is: Can Vivian find happiness after what has been done to her?

To the outside observer, Vivian appears to be a success story. She is a dedicated lawyer who advocates for mentally ill patients at a psychiatric hospital. However, privately, Vivian is grappling with the memories and after-effects of her difficult childhood, compounded by the everyday stresses of being a Black, Latinx woman living in a white society. She lives in a constant state of hypervigilant awareness, making even a simple train ride a heart-pounding drama.

For years, Vivian has used a mix of dating, dieting, dark humor, and smoking weed with her best friend, Jane, to self-medicate. But after a family reunion prompts Vivian to take a bold step, she finds herself alone in new and terrifying ways, without Jane to confide in, and she starts to unravel. Will she find a way to repair what matters most to her?

Post-Traumatic is a debut from a stunning talent. It is a new kind of survivor narrative, featuring a complex heroine who is blazingly, indelibly alive. Readers who loved Open Water, A Little Life, or Luster will adore this razor-sharp book about the aftermath of trauma that somehow manages to brim with warmth, laughter, and hope.

What people are saying about Post-Traumatic:

Deeply original, socially important, psychologically revelatory, propulsively, and idiosyncratically readable. Post-Traumatic is a gem.

Elif Batuman, the author of The Idiot, praised Post-Traumatic as "stunning and riotous."

In conclusion, Post-Traumatic is a must-read for anyone who loves contemporary fiction and wants to explore the depths of the human psyche. Vivian's journey is both heart-wrenching and inspiring, and Walton's writing is masterful. This book will stay with you long after you turn the last page.

Weight: 548g
Dimension: 163 x 239 x 33 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780349702445