The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things

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What to expect

The classic JT LeRoy story collection is now available in audio for the first time ever, featuring eleven previously uncollected stories, including one never before published, and an all-star line-up of twenty-one narrators.

“Beautifully structured and written.”—Hubert Selby, Jr., author of Last Exit to Brooklyn

This book of interconnected stories depicts the chaotic life of a young boy on the run with his teenage mother. When Sarah reclaims Jeremiah from his foster parents, he finds himself catapulted into her world of motels and truck stops, exposed to the abusive, exploitative men she encounters. As he learns to survive in this harrowing environment, Jeremiah also learns to love his mother, even as she descends into drug-fueled madness. Told in spare, lyrical prose, rich with imagination and dark humor, The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things transforms the savagery of Jeremiah’s world into an indelible experience of compassion.

Foreword written and read by Jeff Feuerzeig

Narrators include: Laura Albert, Shirley Manson, Joshua Caleb Johnson, SOKO, Michael Imperioli, Winsome Brown, Pamela Sneed, Robin Weigert, Lawrence Rothman, Kerris Dorsey, Julie Mintz, Paul Mendez, Donovan Leitch, Daniel Newman, Darnell Martin, Alissa Bennett, Libby Mintz, Laura Desiree, Christelle de Castro, and Laila Hayani.

Critics Review

  • “Strong, fierce, hard…Astonishing.”

    Kirkus Reviews
  • “Remarkable.”

    Booklist
  • “A startling achievement.”

    Publishers Weekly
  • “An eyewitness’s imagination burns in his language, which is not lyrical but as vivid as a match held close to the face.”

    New York Times
  • “The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things [has] grit, tragedy, and power. The force of the story continues to exist.”

    Lit Hub
  • “Beautifully structured and written.”

    Hubert Selby Jr., author of Last Exit to Brooklyn

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