Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tales of Two Americas | 2017 | Sarah Smarsh | Buy |
Sarah Smarsh contributed to this 2017 anthology alongside a roster of acclaimed American writers. Tales of Two Americas, edited by John Freeman and published by Penguin, brings together short fiction, essays, narrative journalism, and poetry on the subject of economic inequality in the United States. Contributors include Roxane Gay, Richard Russo, Ann Patchett, Anthony Doerr, Sandra Cisneros, and Rebecca Solnit, among others.
Smarsh’s contribution, “Blood Brother,” follows her own brother through his routine of donating plasma for money. Written in the second person, the piece uses one man’s experience to illustrate the growth of the plasma-selling industry after the 2008 financial collapse. It fits squarely within the themes Smarsh has explored throughout her career, connecting personal stories to the larger economic forces that shape working-class life in America.