Unlikely Animals by Annie Hartnett

“This tragicomic novel is heartfelt, touching, and delightfully quirky. You’ll fall in love with the offbeat cast of characters (both living and dead) and find yourself rooting for them right through the last page.” — Good Housekeeping (Book Club Pick)

Some stories curl up beside you like a cat on a rainy day. This is one of them.

From the acclaimed author of Rabbit Cake comes a one-of-a-kind novel about life, death, and whatever comes after. Emma Starling was a natural-born healer with big plans—until she lost her way. Now a medical school dropout, she’s returned to small-town Everton, New Hampshire, to care for her father, who’s dying from a mysterious brain disease that has him hallucinating small animals and chatting with the ghost of a long-dead naturalist.

And that ghost? He has ideas about how Clive should spend his final days.

Back home, Emma faces her mother’s judgment, her brother’s recent stint in rehab, and the unsettling discovery that her old best friend has vanished—with no one bothering to look. Set against a town wrestling with the very real opioid crisis, this is a tender, funny, wholly original story about family, imperfect friendships, and the possibility of resurrecting what we thought was lost for good.

Recognized as One of the Best Books of the Year by The Washington Post and Book Riot, and longlisted for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize.

Both funny and sad—the kind of story we like best here in the cove. Come linger a while with the Starlings. We think you’ll fall for them, too.

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