Where to Start with Alice McDermott
Because Alice McDermott writes literary, standalone fiction rather than interconnected series, you have the freedom to pick up almost any of her books in any order. However, if you are new to her work, starting with her most acclaimed masterpieces will give you the best sense of her lyrical prose, intimate character studies, and thematic depth.
We highly recommend beginning with Charming Billy (1998). This novel won the National Book Award and serves as the perfect introduction to McDermott’s signature style—using nonchronological memory and community recollections to build a heartbreaking portrait of a single life. Another excellent modern starting point is Absolution (2023), her widely praised novel set in 1960s Saigon, which explores the lives of American wives on the periphery of the Vietnam War and offers a striking departure from her typical East Coast settings.
If you prefer a classic, suburban portrait, That Night (1987) is a lean, powerful story of teenage love and neighborhood gossip in 1960s Long Island that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Any of these three will instantly draw you into her uniquely observant, quietly powerful storytelling style.
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
Reading Alice McDermott's novels in publication order allows you to watch her style evolve from the sharp, self-conscious voice of her debut to the expansive, historical brushstrokes of her later masterpieces. Here is the chronological sequence of her standalone novels:
- A Bigamist's Daughter (1982): McDermott's debut introduces Elizabeth Connelly, a young editor at a vanity press in New York who becomes fascinated by a manuscript about bigamy, leading her to reflect on her own cynical views on love and family.
- That Night (1987): A tragic teenage romance set in the early 1960s suburban Long Island. When a young girl becomes pregnant and is sent away, her boyfriend wages a dramatic fight to see her, viewed through the collective memory of the neighborhood children.
- At Weddings and Wakes (1992): A portrait of three generations of an Irish-American family in Brooklyn. The novel is seen through the eyes of three children who travel with their mother to visit their step-grandmother and aunts, detailing the quiet burdens of family expectations.
- Charming Billy (1998): The narrative begins at a funeral in the Bronx, where family and friends gather to mourn Billy Lynch. Through their shared stories, the novel piece-by-piece reconstructs Billy's life, his tragic alcoholism, and the enduring myth of his lost Irish love.
- Child Of My Heart (2002): Set over one transformative summer in East Hampton, Long Island. A fifteen-year-old girl named Theresa spends her days babysitting and caring for children and pets, navigating the boundary between childhood innocence and the complexities of the adult world.
- After This (2006): This novel follows the Keane family—parents John and Mary and their four children—navigating the cultural and social changes of post-WWII America from their suburban Long Island home through the turbulent 1960s and 70s.
- Someone (2013): A modest, deeply affecting chronicle of an ordinary life. The novel traces Marie Commeford's journey from her childhood in pre-WWII Brooklyn, through school, heartbreak, marriage, and old age.
- The Ninth Hour (2017): Set in early 20th-century Brooklyn, the story begins with a young man's suicide. A congregation of nursing sisters, the Little Sisters of the Sick Poor, step in to help his young widow and her newborn daughter, weaving a complex web of charity, faith, and sacrifice.
- Absolution (2023): Set in Saigon in 1963, this novel focuses on two American women—a newlywed trying to be a good helpmeet and a veteran corporate wife—navigating their domestic lives, social duties, and moral responsibilities during the early stages of the Vietnam War.
What to Know Before You Start
To fully appreciate Alice McDermott's writing, it helps to understand her unique approach to narrative. She is not a plot-driven writer; instead, her stories are character-driven and heavily focused on memory, perspective, and the passage of time. She frequently uses nonchronological structures, jumping back and forth across decades to show how past events echo through a family's future.
A recurring theme in her work is the Irish-American Catholic experience, particularly in the mid-to-late 20th century across Brooklyn, Queens, and Long Island. McDermott explores faith, guilt, familial duty, and grief without ever resorting to caricature. While her early works focus heavily on these tight-knit East Coast communities, her 2023 novel Absolution expands her geographical reach to Vietnam, though it maintains her laser focus on the interior lives of women and the quiet moral dilemmas they face.
Collections, Anthologies, and the "Mondo" Series
In addition to her novels, Alice McDermott has written nonfiction and contributed to various collaborative literary projects. Knowing how these fit into her bibliography will help you round out your reading journey.
Essay Collections
If you want to understand McDermott's philosophy on writing and literature, look to What About the Baby? Some Thoughts on the Art of Fiction (2021). This is a collection of essays, lectures, and personal reflections on the craft of writing. It is highly recommended for aspiring writers and dedicated fans who want a peek behind the curtain of her creative process.
The "Mondo" Anthologies
You may see Alice McDermott's name associated with the "Mondo" book series. These are theme-based pop-culture anthologies edited by Richard Peabody and Lucinda Ebersole. McDermott contributed a short piece to the first volume, Mondo Barbie (1993), which features stories and poems exploring the cultural icon of the Barbie doll. While the series also includes Mondo Elvis (1994), Mondo Marilyn (1995), and Mondo James Dean (1996), McDermott did not contribute to those subsequent volumes, so they are not necessary reads for her completionists.
Other Anthologies
McDermott's short fiction and essays have also appeared in other collections, such as Secret Ingredients: The New Yorker Book of Food and Drink (2007) and Why I Like This Story (2019), reflecting her long-standing relationship with prestigious literary magazines like The New Yorker.