{"product_id":"but-wont-i-miss-me","title":"But Won't I Miss Me","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Tsao's (\u003ci\u003eThe Majesties\u003c\/i\u003e, 2020) provocative novel, \"rebirth\" is the process in which pregnant Vivi will give birth to her baby and to a second self that will grow quickly, kill her, and eat her. Her sister, her husband, and her society view rebirth as a generative gift to new mothers: five years of superhuman strength and vigor. But Vivi is scared. She wants the baby, but she doesn't want to be killed and eaten by a new self. . . .\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis well-structured and deeply compelling novel is about so much more than postpartum struggles literalized into horror. It's about Chinese immigration to Australia in terms of the emotional reasoning, legal processes, and communal experiences. It's also about a marriage's expectations and limits in the face of new parentage and depression. Readers know early on that something went wrong with Vivi's rebirth. When the reason is revealed in part two, and a shift in perspective retells the plot from a different lens, readers are treated to a profound exploration of the limits and consequences of love.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist (starred)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTsao (\u003ci\u003eThe Majesties\u003c\/i\u003e) writes an alternative-reality, sci-fi, body-horror thriller contemplating how society fails mothers, the horror of following the status quo, and, most provocatively, what happens when a person is their own victim. . . . Readers will hang on every detail, falling easily into Tsao's novel and its complex, flawed but sympathetic characters and unable to shake the unsettling tone set by the title; they won't be even close to ready for the twist when it drops. A master class in storytelling that will leave readers, if not reborn, forever changed by the experience. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal (starred)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTiffany Tsao's \u003ci\u003eBut Won't I Miss Me\u003c\/i\u003e features a world where income inequality is staggering and motherhood requires a literal relinquishing of self. . . . \u003ci\u003eBut Won't I Miss Me\u003c\/i\u003e is a combination of mystery, psychological portrait, and sustained philosophical provocation. Tsao, a PEN Prize-winning literary translator of Indonesian fiction in addition to being an author, holds all these registers in balance with singular skill. Tsao's horror operates through implication; the novel's most disturbing moments arise from its world's absolute and cheerful systemic indifference to what women surrender. Comparable to Rachel Yoder's \u003ci\u003eNightbitch\u003c\/i\u003e or Carmen Maria Machado's \u003ci\u003eIn the Dream House\u003c\/i\u003e, this novel is breathtaking in its world-building and devastating in its emotional precision. \u003ci\u003eBut Won't I Miss Me\u003c\/i\u003e is the body horror novel motherhood always deserved. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness (starred)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith evocative details and unassuming yet acerbic wit, Tiffany Tsao gives new meaning to matrescence and asks us to consider--truly consider--the absurd expectations so often placed on new mothers. The accompanying theme of being minority Chinese in Southeast Asia and Australia also shines through, simultaneously celebration and lamentation. BUT WON'T I MISS ME tells all the truth slant in the best possible way.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eYZ Chin, author of Edge Case\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNew mothers possess superhuman abilities and sustainable electricity wards off the climate crisis in this clever blend of fantasy and speculative fiction from Tsao. . . Tsao cannily uses the fantastical elements to explore a new mother's anxieties about measuring up to other mothers. It's worth a look.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSet in an alternate reality where pregnancy endows women with exceptional powers, one new mother uncovers terrifying truths about herself and life in this philosophical and propulsive tale of a woman and mother in crisis.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn a world where drastic measures have averted the global environmental crisis, humans too are now subject to great transformation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVivi should be happy she's pregnant. But she's troubled by a looming reality that seemingly bothers no one else: having a baby also means birthing an identical, nearly indestructible self who will eat her and take her place. \"Rebirth\" is simply a fact of life--nature's way of equipping women for the challenges of motherhood. But as Vivi's unborn child develops, so does her fear.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn a rare turn of events, Vivi emerges from rebirth weakened rather than strong. When her husband cannot tolerate her defects, they divorce and Vivi relocates to the country with her baby to work for her old boss.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChronically exhausted, mentally struggling, and on her own, Vivi must move on--for her own and her son's sake. But just as with her failed rebirth, swapping old for new isn't as straightforward as it seems. When Vivi finally discovers what went wrong during childbirth, it will rewrite her life utterly: future, present, and past.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn inspired blend of \u003ci\u003eNightbitch\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Substance\u003c\/i\u003e, as enthralling and incisive as \u003ci\u003eThe School of Good Mothers\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Need\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBut Won't I Miss Me\u003c\/i\u003e is a gripping and profound exploration of the physical and psychological tolls of motherhood, with a speculative horror spin. Tiffany Tsao imaginatively reveals the macabre hidden in the mundane and asks us to consider what we lose of ourselves when we leave our broken parts behind.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eBooklist\u003c\/span\u003e 04\/01\/2026 (EAN 9780063448490, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 04\/20\/2026 (EAN 9780063448490, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/span\u003e 04\/01\/2026 pg. 56 (EAN 9780063448490, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/span\u003e 12\/30\/0001 (EAN 9780063448490, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eContributor Bio:\u003c\/strong\u003eTsao, Tiffany\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBorn in the US and raised between Indonesia and Singapore, \u003cstrong\u003eTiffany Tsao \u003c\/strong\u003eis a former academic turned award-winning literary translator, who translates from the Indonesian. She received the 2023 PEN Translation Prize for her translation of Budi Darma's \u003cem\u003ePeople from Bloomington\u003c\/em\u003e, and her translation of Norman Erikson Pasaribu's \u003cem\u003eHappy Stories, Mostly\u003c\/em\u003e was longlisted for the Internation Booker Prize in 2022. She lives in Sydney, Australia, with her family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Harpervia","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496026734870,"sku":"9780063448490","price":33.6,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9780063448490.jpg?v=1783050949","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/but-wont-i-miss-me","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}