About, Above, Around: 50 Prepositions

by Mark Mayer, Jason Stopa (Illustrator)

212 pages, Paperback

Published February 25, 2026

Reviews

[Kit Simpson]

I am definitely biased, because this book was written by a Skidmore Prof, but I had a lot of fun reading this. Prof. Mayer does really great work in building complex worlds in very little words and also out of very little words--words like "via," for instance, are three letters long and yet contain much meaning. Yay!

[Zachary Mayer-Bickel]

I’m very biased in this books favor given that the author is my cousin.

I’m happy to say I have never read anything quite like About Above Around. I really liked the variety of perspectives taken on across the stories. Death, beings of higher dimensions, Neptune, and the god of Neptune’s upper respiratory all get their due. It’s odd and sometimes hard to parse but very unique and enjoyable. There are some characters and elements reminiscent of Mayer’s previous book Aerialists. But I found the authors voice and imagination to be the familiar through line across both books rather than any particular subject matter (though it is present too.) The art is also excellent and adds an additional interesting layer of matter to interpret and parse.

Reading About Above AroundI found myself laughing at times and moved at other moments. Some other times I frowned in concentration as I tried to understand what was going on and how the narrative related to its particular preposition. But being moved and challenged by writing is why I bother reading at all. I’m excited to return to About Above Around soon to try and understand some of the stories that went over my head this time. What I do understand and appreciate after a first read is the imagination and creativity that shines through all 50 stories in this book. It really is unique.

[Shoshana Distenfeld]

3.5/5

Things I love:
- the premise
- the creativity and sheer weirdness
- I was astonished by the concise world-building
- I’ve had my own idea for a book of short stories with an underlying thread, and this work inspired me to keep thinking about it
- the art

Things I love a little less:
- Most of these stories are truly emotional. But some force the emotion by appealing to our most abstract thoughts in a way I didn’t always follow. Making everything seem deep and introspective takes the meaning out of the things that do resonate
- stories about current events

[Regina]

A very creative unique book artfully designed. The value,importance and multiple meanings of prepositions is cleverly conveyed in these short vignettes. Mayer’s range of creative writing comes through as one reads the varied stories. It is not a book to sit down and read through but one for slow reading and to savor .

[Kelli P.]

I'm the problem. It's me. I adore words. I appreciate how much every word holds. And, yet, with some of the individual stories...I just couldn't get there. I tried to imagine my mind expanding and turning and twisting to get there ...wherever there is...and I fell short. Nonetheless, I was impressed with the creativity and heart and soul with which this book was written.

[Sean Kinch]

“I don’t believe in God,” a son tells his mother.

After a pause. “Sounds smart.”

[Emily Ruskovich]

This is one of my favorite story collections I've ever read.