Helen of Nowhere by Goodman, Makenna

LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE

"Philosophically, politically, and spiritually adventurous, this slim, ambitious volume has the power to transform." --The Booker Prize judges

In the middle of the countryside, a realtor is showing a disgraced professor around an idyllic house. She speaks not only about the home's many wonderful qualities but about its previous owner, the mystifying Helen, whose presence still seems to suffuse every fixture. Through hearing stories of Helen's chosen way of living, the man begins to see that his own story is not actually over--rather, he is being offered a chance to buy his way into the simple life, close to the land, that's always been out of reach to him. But as evening fades into black, he will learn that the asking price may be much higher, and stranger, than anticipated.

Philosophically and formally adventurous, at once intimate and cosmic in scope, Helen of Nowhere asks: What must we give up in exchange for true happiness?

Author: Makenna Goodman
Publisher: Coffee House Press
Published: 09/09/2025
Pages: 141
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.32lbs
Size: 7.40h x 4.90w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9781566897358

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 09/15/2025

About the Author
Makenna Goodman is the author of two novels, Helen of Nowhere (Coffee House Press, 2025) and The Shame (Milkweed Editions, 2020), and has written for international publications including the New York Review of Books, the Los Angeles Review of Books, Harvard Review, The White Review, BOMB, The Common, ASTRA Magazine, and Mousse Magazine. Also an editor, she is based in Vermont.