Imagine the hundred things you enjoy doing most in the world. Reading Beth Ann Fennelly's Heating & Cooling is more fun than 95 of them.--Richard Russo
Varying in length from a single sentence to several pages, the essays in [Heating & Cooling] are told with wry self-awareness and compassion.-- "Poets & Writers"
Consistently entertaining...always poised, eloquent, and full of moments of tenderness.-- "Electric Literature"
Wise, irreverent, funny....Everyone should read this book.-- "Atlanta Journal-Constitution"
Whether you call these pieces poetry or memoir, they showcase Fennelly's signature freshness and candor.... This collection will invite you into the delicate balance between the challenging, sometimes squalid, human condition and the beauty and sadness of the transcendent.-- "The Rumpus"
A rich, varied, and refreshingly unpredictable portrait of a woman in her prime.... Readers, you are in for a hootenanny of a wild ride. This is Fennelly at her most laid-bare, wickedly funny, and irrepressibly poetic best.-- "The Kenyon Review"
Part of the fun of reading Heating & Cooling is watching Fennelly play with language, making every word count, all while digging into the heart of things.... This tiny book packs many mighty punches as Fennelly takes on Catholicism, cancer, marriage, motherhood, and mortality.-- "Clarion Ledger"
[Fennelly] has an eye for the absurd, for those telling, little moments that make up a life and build memories. Some are humorous, some are moving. Others are heartbreaking.-- "Florida Weekly"
Fennelly packs a lot into each short piece, with some lighter in subject matter and others with a sudden punch-in-the-gut feel, weighted with existential exploration. Potent despite their brevity.-- "Library Journal (starred review)"
An author of bold perception, powerful femininity, and candid vulnerability. This deceptively slim, convention-defying collection delivers unerringly generous rewards.-- "Booklist"