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Sleepovers: Stories
Hailed by Lauren Groff as “fully committed to the truth no matter how dark or difficult or complicated it may be,” and written with “incantatory crispness,” Sleepovers, the debut short story collection by Ashleigh Bryant Phillips, takes us to a forgotten corner of the rural South, full of cemeteries, soybean fields, fishing holes, and Duck Thru gas stations. We meet a runaway teen, a mattress salesman, feral kittens, an elderly bachelorette wearing a horsehair locket, and a little girl named after Shania Twain. Here, time and memory circle above Phillips’ characters like vultures and angels, as they navigate the only landscape they’ve ever known. Corn reaches for rain, deer run blindly, and no matter how hungry or hurt, some forgotten hymn is always remembered. “The literary love child of Carson McCullers and John the Baptist, Ashleigh Bryant Phillips’ imagination is profoundly original and private," writes Rebecca Lee. Sleepovers is the winner of the 2019 C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize, selected by Lauren Groff.
191 pages, Paperback
First published June 16, 2020
64 people are currently reading
1726 people want to read
About the author
Ashleigh Bryant Phillips
2 books70 followersAshleigh Bryant Phillips is from rural Woodland, North Carolina. She's a graduate of Meredith College and earned an MFA from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Her stories have appeared in The Paris Review and The Oxford American. Her debut collection, Sleepovers, is the 2019 winner of the C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize, selected by Lauren Groff.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 141 reviews
March 18, 2020
I have this disagreement with a lot of recent Southern lit which tends to fall around the boxed-in nature of so many books of late. We're trapped by our past or by our poverty, be it spiritual, material, familial, etc. There's a certain faux sense I get reading some Southern books; they explore the past without reckoning with it, or the present without dealing with serious contemporary issues. It's like the genre defines itself because of outside expectations and inside concessions to what makes a good Southern story. Southern lit is in a purgatory that is often literally depicted on the page. Point is, the stuff lacks a lot of humanity. (disclaimer: I'm not nearly well-read enough to argue this seriously, but it's a feeling I've gotten from what reading I have done.)
In comes Ashleigh Bryant Phillips' new book Sleepovers. The stories here are almost all totally brilliant. Short or long, they all have a heart that I admire greatly. It's a smart collection, lots of shared themes and characters that appear in different stories. More than that, the thing I love so much about this book is that is unabashedly about poor people without the usual college-educated disdain. The people depicted in this novel are real people, well-rounded, with hopes and dreams and failures that transcend the bounds of their poverty. The stories are so grounded in the characters that the backdrop becomes an afterthought. I cared about the people Phillips writes about. I still think about some of the stories I read in this collection.
I'm so excited for what Phillips' career has in-store. She's a much needed injection of intelligence and pure heart into Southern lit. Read this book! I don't know how posterity will treat it, but it deserves to be seen as one of the best collections 2020 has to offer, and probably the best set of Southern stories of the last decade.
In comes Ashleigh Bryant Phillips' new book Sleepovers. The stories here are almost all totally brilliant. Short or long, they all have a heart that I admire greatly. It's a smart collection, lots of shared themes and characters that appear in different stories. More than that, the thing I love so much about this book is that is unabashedly about poor people without the usual college-educated disdain. The people depicted in this novel are real people, well-rounded, with hopes and dreams and failures that transcend the bounds of their poverty. The stories are so grounded in the characters that the backdrop becomes an afterthought. I cared about the people Phillips writes about. I still think about some of the stories I read in this collection.
I'm so excited for what Phillips' career has in-store. She's a much needed injection of intelligence and pure heart into Southern lit. Read this book! I don't know how posterity will treat it, but it deserves to be seen as one of the best collections 2020 has to offer, and probably the best set of Southern stories of the last decade.
February 24, 2021
3.5 stars
Sleepovers is a gritty, dark, and honest portrait of a small Southern town and the lives of its residents. It’s a short story collection with a mixed bag of brief character sketches, poignant moments in time, and unapologetic thoughts. Some even made me uncomfortable with the brutal honesty. There are no judgments found on these pages, just raw storytelling. While some were forgettable for me, the standouts that knocked me off my feet were Miss Katie and Charlie Elliot.
An excellent addition to Southern lit from a skilled storyteller.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
Sleepovers is a gritty, dark, and honest portrait of a small Southern town and the lives of its residents. It’s a short story collection with a mixed bag of brief character sketches, poignant moments in time, and unapologetic thoughts. Some even made me uncomfortable with the brutal honesty. There are no judgments found on these pages, just raw storytelling. While some were forgettable for me, the standouts that knocked me off my feet were Miss Katie and Charlie Elliot.
An excellent addition to Southern lit from a skilled storyteller.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
May 27, 2020
I devoured this short story collection about a small Southern town and all the lives that people it. There is a deep, pervading sense of "story" throughout these pages. Some of the selections are character sketches and some have the feeling of mythology or confession. Many are pretty experimental.
The best story here is "Return to the Coondog Castle," a multiple narrator tale at the book's center. I also really loved "Charlie Elliot" (impressively written in the 2nd person point of view), "Earth to Amy," and "The Hunting Lodge." The opening story, "Shania," might be one I use in my classroom next year.
Of course you could place *Sleepovers* among the tradition of Southern literature, but I also saw echoes of Sandra Cisneros' fantastic collection *Woman Hollering Creek.* These aren't gentle stories. They are gritty and hard and brutal, but Phillips treats all her characters, especially her female characters, with bounding respect.
The book hits stores in mid-June 2020.
*A hearty 'thank you!' to Hub City Writers for sharing this early copy in exchange for an honest review.*
The best story here is "Return to the Coondog Castle," a multiple narrator tale at the book's center. I also really loved "Charlie Elliot" (impressively written in the 2nd person point of view), "Earth to Amy," and "The Hunting Lodge." The opening story, "Shania," might be one I use in my classroom next year.
Of course you could place *Sleepovers* among the tradition of Southern literature, but I also saw echoes of Sandra Cisneros' fantastic collection *Woman Hollering Creek.* These aren't gentle stories. They are gritty and hard and brutal, but Phillips treats all her characters, especially her female characters, with bounding respect.
The book hits stores in mid-June 2020.
*A hearty 'thank you!' to Hub City Writers for sharing this early copy in exchange for an honest review.*
July 21, 2020
Spare as fuck and straight to the gut. Not quite on par with Barry Hannah or William Gay but this is excellent southern lit.
July 2, 2020
I ordered this book after reading "The Virgin" in The Oxford American magazine. Maybe this says more about my lack of exposure to modern literature, but I had never read a character like the one in The Virgin.
With few exceptions every character is quite poor in this collection. What struck me most was these characters' innocence. But not like cheesy, not-knowing about the big bad world kind. More like people who are stunned off jump out of the womb, because the harshness is all they know. And they do what they can.
These were the stories I liked best: The Chopping Block, Snowball Jr. (told from the perspective of a deer who was a murdered young woman in the life before), Charlie Elliott, Mind Craft, and The Virgin.
With few exceptions every character is quite poor in this collection. What struck me most was these characters' innocence. But not like cheesy, not-knowing about the big bad world kind. More like people who are stunned off jump out of the womb, because the harshness is all they know. And they do what they can.
These were the stories I liked best: The Chopping Block, Snowball Jr. (told from the perspective of a deer who was a murdered young woman in the life before), Charlie Elliott, Mind Craft, and The Virgin.
October 19, 2020
Sleepovers is an unflinching examination of forgotten lives in small-town USA. Phillips' characters are a complex bunch and the telling of their stories here is at once wry and deeply poignant.
June 25, 2020
One of the most haunting and mesmerizing collections of stories that I can remember reading in a very long time. There’s a certain honesty about each story; no judgments, just the telling. There is even a story told in the second person, which was a bit oft-putting, but seemed to work given its particular subject. There is also a small town feel to the stories, as if the town needed to be unburdened by its past and present. It appears the town found its storyteller.
I was reminded of a quote from Robert Penn Warren about a writer’s first published work. It seems to apply very well to this collection: the tang of actuality whets the compelling rhythms.
I was reminded of a quote from Robert Penn Warren about a writer’s first published work. It seems to apply very well to this collection: the tang of actuality whets the compelling rhythms.
October 9, 2020
Each story in Sleepovers takes the perspective of a different character living in the (mostly) rural South. The stories are unexpectedly dark, cutting, and sometimes deeply disturbing, revealing the hopelessness, struggle, and despair the characters face. Don't let the whimsical-looking cover fool you—this book is not for the faint of heart!
June 15, 2020
Every single story is sad and depressing. But like a car accident, you can't seem to look away.
March 18, 2021
Too much dark, not enough stars. That said I would read more from the author down the road.
September 13, 2021
This debut collection of short stories by Ashleigh Bryant Phillips are all set in the rural backwaters of North Carolina. The characters in these stories are all struggling with poverty and also often mental illness, neglectful parents, addictions and terrible boyfriends. This debut collection suffers from being uneven. The first few stories in the collection are fine enough, but nothing to get excited about, causing me to wonder why exactly [[Lauren Groff]] had blurbed it so enthusiastically. Then came Mind Craft, in which a young woman takes care of her nephew and her aging father for a few days so her sister can have a break. It is both unflinching and tender and followed by the equally brilliant The Locket, in which a mentally challenged woman enjoys the tenuous friendship she has with a lifeguard at the pool, a friendship the other woman is likely unaware of.
Weak stories are nothing unusual in any collection, with writers padding out their stellar work with less noteworthy filler, but many of the stories here feel undeveloped, as though the author had played briefly with an idea or a scenario and then lost interest. When her stories are fully realized, Phillps's writing has both heart and hard edges, the kinds of stories that burrow beneath the skin and kept me thinking about them long after I'd finished reading. But a lot of the work this collection feels unfinished, like Lorene and Jacuzzi, where a few snippets of character and idea sit juxtaposed on a page or two, without the development of her finished stories. When they are good, Phillips's stories remind me of Flannery O'Connor in her focus on the dark, squirming corners of Southern rural life. I'm not sorry to have picked up this book, despite its shortcomings and I'm eager to read what Phillips writes next.
Weak stories are nothing unusual in any collection, with writers padding out their stellar work with less noteworthy filler, but many of the stories here feel undeveloped, as though the author had played briefly with an idea or a scenario and then lost interest. When her stories are fully realized, Phillps's writing has both heart and hard edges, the kinds of stories that burrow beneath the skin and kept me thinking about them long after I'd finished reading. But a lot of the work this collection feels unfinished, like Lorene and Jacuzzi, where a few snippets of character and idea sit juxtaposed on a page or two, without the development of her finished stories. When they are good, Phillips's stories remind me of Flannery O'Connor in her focus on the dark, squirming corners of Southern rural life. I'm not sorry to have picked up this book, despite its shortcomings and I'm eager to read what Phillips writes next.
April 7, 2020
4.5 stars.
I’ll be having a review in the Southern Carolina Review once I write it. So I won’t be saying *too much* here.
But what a debut. What Ashleigh Bryant Phillips is doing here is nothing short of excellence. This is the next wave of Southern Lit, in the vein of Ron Rash; full of tender heart and soul, with such a compassion for its characters and settings. That is to say, not every story is a happy ending, but it’s the way Phillips cares about what she’s writing about that translates so well into the sentences. I know a lot of Southern lit chronicles the poor, the low of the low-income, but this is not a stale portrayal of that. Just read “Miss Katie” and you’ll agree. Like a good Springsteen song, these characters aren’t inherently ashamed of their circumstances, but they want what we all want - respect and the ability to feel free. Ashleigh, tell me your secrets to writing - you have so much to teach. I look forward to the pleasure of reading more of your work in the future.
I’ll be having a review in the Southern Carolina Review once I write it. So I won’t be saying *too much* here.
But what a debut. What Ashleigh Bryant Phillips is doing here is nothing short of excellence. This is the next wave of Southern Lit, in the vein of Ron Rash; full of tender heart and soul, with such a compassion for its characters and settings. That is to say, not every story is a happy ending, but it’s the way Phillips cares about what she’s writing about that translates so well into the sentences. I know a lot of Southern lit chronicles the poor, the low of the low-income, but this is not a stale portrayal of that. Just read “Miss Katie” and you’ll agree. Like a good Springsteen song, these characters aren’t inherently ashamed of their circumstances, but they want what we all want - respect and the ability to feel free. Ashleigh, tell me your secrets to writing - you have so much to teach. I look forward to the pleasure of reading more of your work in the future.
June 23, 2020
SLEEPOVERS is one of those very special story collections that burrows deeper and deeper into its subject, in this case the haunted lives of the inhabitants of a small North Carolina town. Ashleigh Bryant Phillips writes with the lyricism of Breece Pancake and the grotesque beauty of Harry Crews at his best. My favorites are the longer stories... “The Bass” and “The Chopping Block.” Can’t wait until she brings a novel into this world.
June 23, 2020
I was supposed to read this later in the month with a reading group, but I couldn't put it down. It's a haunting selection of stories - some favorites: The Chopping Block, An Unspoken, The Country Woman, The Bear, You Go Into An ABC Store... It was such a delight to see some of my favorite characters from previous stories come back around in later pieces, too. Looking forward to re-visiting and for what comes next.
July 14, 2022
"Sleepovers" is a fearless and unsettling examination of the modern rural south and a testament to the fact that lives lived in small, remote places are anything but trivial.
July 25, 2024
Deeply enjoyable, desperately sad collection of southern gothic short stories. Some with recurring characters. The less positive reviews ask for happier endings or sunshine through clouds. I felt like the sunshine was the tenacious characters trudging through a dark life. Characters who rightly know there is no winning. They don't quit. They stop and smell the roses because that's all they have.
Perfect for a dark hurricane with no power, high winds, and loud rain.
Perfect for a dark hurricane with no power, high winds, and loud rain.
September 16, 2024
Brilliant. From the violence in every story that alternates between being right in your face and then subtly shimmering in the background, to each of these incredibly memorable characters, this collection of short stories shines.
July 18, 2020
All too often, the genre of Southern Gothic gets lost in the absurd, the freakish characters populating a Flannery O'Connor novel or people marrying their cousins. What we see much less of are the stories about ordinary people residing in the many small, unnamed towns throughout the rural South. Dollar Stores, unreliable cars, chronic illness, drug addiction, and trailers feature prominently in these stories, along with people who quietly accept these conditions as part of their reality of day-to-day survival.
What made this book so powerful and memorable for me personally, was knowing that the author is writing with authority about people and places that she knows on a deep level—never once did I doubt the authenticity of the dialogue, and I found it easy to visualize the characters narrating the stories in a slow Southern drawl. The stories will just as often shock you with the violence of its characters' actions as it will sadden you with a child's exposure to a teacher's harsh judgment of her community.
In “The Bass,” a single mother proudly displays the “fancy” Dollar Store pillows that say “Angel,”in her trailer, while simultaneously trying to seduce a married man who's come over to unclog her toilet. A childless couple lovingly brings their neighbor leftovers over the years, as his life slowly descends into chaos and drug addiction. This is hardly a Norman Rockwell version of small-town life, but there's more depth of feeling and compassion in the quiet suffering of people working in chicken processing plants and as meth dealers then any novel I've read in awhile.
What made this book so powerful and memorable for me personally, was knowing that the author is writing with authority about people and places that she knows on a deep level—never once did I doubt the authenticity of the dialogue, and I found it easy to visualize the characters narrating the stories in a slow Southern drawl. The stories will just as often shock you with the violence of its characters' actions as it will sadden you with a child's exposure to a teacher's harsh judgment of her community.
In “The Bass,” a single mother proudly displays the “fancy” Dollar Store pillows that say “Angel,”in her trailer, while simultaneously trying to seduce a married man who's come over to unclog her toilet. A childless couple lovingly brings their neighbor leftovers over the years, as his life slowly descends into chaos and drug addiction. This is hardly a Norman Rockwell version of small-town life, but there's more depth of feeling and compassion in the quiet suffering of people working in chicken processing plants and as meth dealers then any novel I've read in awhile.
July 20, 2020
Book Review!!
Sleepovers by Ashleigh Bryant Phillips
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
What a beautiful collection of short stories. Wow!
I will admit, this lime green cover with the pretty blonde on the front is what initially drew me in. When I saw it was a collection of short stories, I kind of hesitated. I have never been a fan and I’m not sure why. But I have been reading more and more, and can now say I fully enjoy them.
This was an unapologetic and mesmerizing telling about a small, Southern town and the people who have found themselves inhabiting it. Some of these stories made me take a double, hell even a triple take. I’d be reading.. Then I’d say, “Wait- did I just read what I think I read?” I loved that the author wasn’t afraid to attack these stories with such vigor and candidness. This is the type of book you’ll wish you could go back and read for the first time again. I also really loved being able to sit down and read one story, or read multiple, one after the other. They were like potato chips and I couldn’t just stop at one, though.
I can’t recommend this enough! 😍
(Thank you to Edelweiss for the ARC).
@fyebooks on Instagram!
Sleepovers by Ashleigh Bryant Phillips
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
What a beautiful collection of short stories. Wow!
I will admit, this lime green cover with the pretty blonde on the front is what initially drew me in. When I saw it was a collection of short stories, I kind of hesitated. I have never been a fan and I’m not sure why. But I have been reading more and more, and can now say I fully enjoy them.
This was an unapologetic and mesmerizing telling about a small, Southern town and the people who have found themselves inhabiting it. Some of these stories made me take a double, hell even a triple take. I’d be reading.. Then I’d say, “Wait- did I just read what I think I read?” I loved that the author wasn’t afraid to attack these stories with such vigor and candidness. This is the type of book you’ll wish you could go back and read for the first time again. I also really loved being able to sit down and read one story, or read multiple, one after the other. They were like potato chips and I couldn’t just stop at one, though.
I can’t recommend this enough! 😍
(Thank you to Edelweiss for the ARC).
@fyebooks on Instagram!
July 25, 2020
A chilling collection of short stories that remind me of stories I heard growing up yet offering first person accounts that changed my perception. This feels like the intersection of a diary and a small time rumor mill written by a brilliant wordsmith. “Miss Katie” left me shaken with memories flooding back of growing up in eastern Northam Carolina.
September 6, 2020
This was a really great collection of short stories, that all take place in rural North Carolina as far as I can tell. They’re sad. I don’t have a lot to compare it to, but I thought the author was honest and empathetic toward her characters.
May 23, 2021
Being from a very small southern town myself, that no one has heard of, these stories felt intimate and familiar. I loved the common themes that tied many of the stories together - culminating in a collection that I couldn't put down.
September 17, 2023
What if you read the saddest like, six pages ever about a character you were immediately invested in and then that kept happening over and over for like 200 pages…really good really good. I will never eat another peanut butter sandwich EVER.
June 5, 2020
“You’ve really got to love this place to stay.”
June 23, 2020
A stunning, completely unsentimental debut from a fierce new voice in fiction!
July 13, 2020
Loved how Ashleigh captures the complexity and beauty of life!
May 4, 2021
“Truth is, before our baby came, I came out here and swam out to the middle of that water. Went right in with my boots on. I wanted the water to fill me up till there won’t nothing left. I wanted something to come and just pull me to the bottom. But I just floated there all afternoon and watched the sky change to stars. I was waiting there when I heard Melissa calling for me. I watched the light she was shining on the water, watched it get closer to me. She was screaming my name, running down into the water with her big belly, pulling me out. Telling me she loved me over and over and I couldn’t say nothing. She was pulling stuff out of my hair and beard. Then she stopped and showed me. ‘Look, forsythia blooms,’ she said.” — “The Bass”
Favorites here include: "Mind Craft," "The Locket," "An Unspoken," "The Bass," "Lorene," "Sleepovers," "The Mattress," "The Country Woman," and the magnificent "The Chopping Block."
Favorites here include: "Mind Craft," "The Locket," "An Unspoken," "The Bass," "Lorene," "Sleepovers," "The Mattress," "The Country Woman," and the magnificent "The Chopping Block."
July 12, 2020
The word that best summarizes this story collection is "unflinching." Ashleigh Bryant Phillips shows all the sadness, joy, complication, and contradiction her characters live in the rural, struggle-class South. Part of what makes these stories so accessible and sometimes funny is they're mostly told by the voices of the very young. Girls and young women making sense of the world--totally captured by the place and the history they come from, and also aware of the judgement that awaits them if they step outside their sphere. Her dialogue expresses the music of this part of the world, even when her characters are saying unforgivable things to each other. These aren't easy stories to tell, but Phillips does it with amazing grace.
December 20, 2023
La mia sarà una unpopular opinion.
Nonostante la schiettezza e l’evoluzione di ciascuna storia e, conseguentemente, di ogni personaggio, questo libro non mi ha né colpito, né entusiasmato.
Sono 23 storie che danno voce ad uomini, donne e bambini, che si muovono nel sud degli Stati Uniti. Ogni storia ha un proprio decorso che non trova una conclusione o una spiegazione.
Ho trovato la scrittura troppo enigmatica e, a mio parere, a tratti poco comprensibile.
Sinceramente, penso di non aver neanche capito alcuni punti.
2.5 ⭐️
Nonostante la schiettezza e l’evoluzione di ciascuna storia e, conseguentemente, di ogni personaggio, questo libro non mi ha né colpito, né entusiasmato.
Sono 23 storie che danno voce ad uomini, donne e bambini, che si muovono nel sud degli Stati Uniti. Ogni storia ha un proprio decorso che non trova una conclusione o una spiegazione.
Ho trovato la scrittura troppo enigmatica e, a mio parere, a tratti poco comprensibile.
Sinceramente, penso di non aver neanche capito alcuni punti.
2.5 ⭐️
March 9, 2025
I found myself struggling to pick this up after the first few stories. It was objectively a good collection of short stories but I didn’t feel particularly connected to many of the characters. Someone who actually grew up in Appalachia might have a different experience with this book, but I only lived in North Carolina for college. If this was set in the Midwest I honestly think I would’ve connected with it more.
I still think it earns 4 stars because I don’t want my subjective experience to impact my rating too much.
I still think it earns 4 stars because I don’t want my subjective experience to impact my rating too much.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 141 reviews