"Stories of exceptional subtlety and wit... A virtuoso of decimating dialogue and provocative predicaments, Beattie is at her sharpest and most exhilarating in this nimble and surprising exploration of place, identity, and responsibility." --Booklist (starred)

"A vivid circling as Beattie introduces and re-introduces characters moving in a kaleidoscope of narrative." --David Ulin, The Los Angeles Times

"Full of ambivalent love, modern Southern charm, and contemporary concerns, the stories in this collection are timeless as well as sharply contemporary." --Library Journal

"'Powerful' might be too trite a descriptor for Beattie's new story collection, in which the pieces are fastened together by a common presence: the Confederate monuments that stamp her setting of Charlottesville, Virginia." --Elle

"Smart and wry...measured prose and incisive humor make these stories shine. Once again, Beattie proves herself up to the task of pinpointing America's contradictions." --Publishers Weekly

"Sharply focused work from a master of the short fiction form." --Kirkus

"A deft mash of lonesomeness and wit." --Chicago Tribune

"Beattie nails the details... sophisticated, idiosyncratic and witty." --Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Supple, superb... Onlookers is a candid look outward and inward, reflecting masterfully on selfhood and community." --Boston Globe

"Beattie is not holding anything back. The writing is intentional and patient; comfortable lingering in those ordinary moments that in other hands might present as flat and monochrome. Look closer: there is texture there, blended colors, a complex catching of light." --Halimah Marcus, Electric Literature