Love, Dirt

by Bruce Johnson

From the intimate confines of a Nebraska farmhouse to the bustling streets of South America, the characters of Love, Dirt traverse uneasy spaces in search of human connection. A closeted teen on a trip to Chile hides in his parents’ bedroom to avoid being caught fooling around with a local boy. An elderly couple attempts to scale a volcano, wrestling with their own physical limitations and an unbearable loss in their past. A father becomes convinced that a daycare has swapped his toddler with a near-identical imposter. The public relations industry of Las Vegas is at first amused and then scandalized by a businesswoman’s ability to divine people’s birthplaces and childhood experiences just by listening to them speak. And a son’s long-deceased parents return to life as fumbling, inept zombies who are more nuisance than threat. In these and other stories, Bruce Johnson’s bold, thought-provoking debut explores how we are shaped by the narratives that we craft for ourselves and others.

154 pages, Paperback

Published November 12, 2025

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of stories. Some were surprisingly short but powerful, and some unspooled in a more leisurely fashion.

A few stories (“The Brightmore Problem,” “The So-Called Jacob”) reminded me of George Saunders and his sometimes bizarre tales in which reality and the absurd mingle.

The thing that impressed me most, though, was the strong finishes that many of these stories had. Whether in a final paragraph or a final sentence, stories like “Breath,” “What That Meant in Miles,” and “Snapshots” summed up a truth about being human and muddling through life that gave me pause.

Thank you to NetGalley and University of Iowa Press for granting me access to an ARC of this title.

[adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bruce Johnson’s “Love, Dirt” is a collection gathering about fifteen short sorties of varying lengths and genres.

From a brother asking his sister to protect her while he sells his body for some extra cash to a man who decides to take sayings literally in hope of an easier life, Johnson thoughtfully explores family, friendship and love : what it might mean for different people and how it shapes them.

In the short time we spend with them, all of his characters carve a place for themselves inside our hearts, and we can’t help but empathise with them and be sad to part with them once we turn the last page. Their experience are ours and we are left raw as we learn through them.

I would say more, however, I think the less you know about this book going into it, the better. If your interpretation is stained by another person’s, it just wouldn’t be the same.

On another note, I do feel a bit icky about how few female characters there were and how some of them were written—though maybe that’s just me—,which is why I rate this book 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4).

[RebeccaReadsTooMuch 💁‍♀️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of beautifully-written, highly-entertaining short stories that left me thinking about how we connect with each other, especially when it comes to difficult topics like identity, family, addiction, and loss.

I took my time and savored each story individually. These stories mostly highlighted the poignant moments in the day-to-day, with a touch of zombies, yes zombies, presented in unique way that I found fascinating and thought provoking.

I can tell from these stories that Bruce Johnson is a true literary talent, and I will be watching for more stories (hopefully full length novels 🤞 ) written by him in the future.

Thank you to University of Iowa Press for the digital ARC.

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love, Dirt is a series of snippets, little peeks into the lives of ordinary people living complex lives. From hints of the supernatural, to the every day, common boat-rocking events of divorce, child loss, and the resilient act of moving forward after such things, Love, Dirt explores the humanity in us all. In the smallest moments.

Some stories were only a page or barely more, while others could almost constitute a chapter in a larger book. And that, in my opinion, was what made this book so engaging. Every short story was like reading a chapter of someone’s life. We didn’t need all the details, the full background, to understand the humanity between the pages. We got just enough to find our footing, and the story unrolled from there.

Love, Dirt was a welcome break from the longer-form books I’ve been reading, and I enjoyed the respite found within the slices of life. I would recommend this book to others, once it comes out.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting me access to the ARC.

[Nick Artrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

I requested and received an eARC of Love, Dirt by Bruce Johnson via NetGalley. This collection of short stories traverses the spectrum of human experiences, prodding at the narratives we craft for ourselves and others. A closeted teenage boy hides to avoid being caught with another boy. A woman is asked to provide her brother protection while he turns tricks. In stranger instances, a son’s long-deceased parents return as zombies while another story sees a father questioning whether the child returned to him at daycare is in fact his son.

As much as Love, Dirty is a collection of stories about human connection, it also seems to be about the lines we cross within those connections. Each story, in one way or another, seems to tackle a pivotal moment in a relationship —whether that be between friends, siblings, strangers, a community even. As I was reading, I couldn’t help but wonder what stories would connect with readers and why. For me, the ending of “The Knack” and “The Brightmore Problem” both landed like bullets to the heart, evoking stronger reactions than some of more emotionally intimate stories like “Consider It Saved.” I’m not sure what that says about me, but I still enjoyed each story individually.

“Love, Dirt”, “Sayings”, and “All the Wild” were my favorite stories from the book. Each of these stories approaches the anxieties of masculinity in a thoughtful and nuanced manner. As I waded through Johnson’s stories I kept trying to tie everything together, centering myself and my experiences in my interpretations. “Now Nothing” is a piece that confronts this way of thinking and contained the most forceful ending among the lot. Love, Dirt asks big questions such as how we define ourselves, how deeply we can truly know one another, and what compromises we make to maintain peace and create happiness in our relationships. The book doesn’t always provide answers, but through skilled writing and memorable anecdotes it will stoke your curiosity.

[Kai · Rating 2 out of 5]

While it's clear that from a technical level Johnson knows how to write, I just could not care about any of these stories. I'm sure someone will like this but it certainly wasn't for me.