Where to Start Reading Diane Cook?
Because Diane Cook’s body of work consists of one standalone novel and one short story collection (plus several anthology appearances), there is no complex chronology to follow. Instead, your starting point depends entirely on the format you prefer. We recommend two paths for readers new to her writing:
Path 1: The Novelist Route (Start with The New Wilderness)
If you prefer immersive, long-form speculative fiction, start with her debut novel, The New Wilderness (2020). This Booker Prize-shortlisted novel offers a deep, emotionally resonant look at environmental collapse and the primal bond between a mother and daughter. It is ideal for fans of literary climate fiction (Cli-Fi) like Margaret Atwood's works or Emily St. John Mandel's Station Eleven.
Path 2: The Short Story Route (Start with Man V. Nature)
If you enjoy surreal, dark, and absurdly humorous short fiction in the vein of George Saunders or Karen Russell, start with her debut collection, Man V. Nature (2014). These twelve stories offer bite-sized, high-concept scenarios that explore the thin veneer of human civilization. Starting here allows you to experience the evolution of Cook’s signature style before tackling her full-length novel.
Diane Cook Books in Publication Order
Here is the complete publication order of Diane Cook’s standalone novel, collections, and notable anthology appearances:
- Man V. Nature (Collection) — 2014
- Choose Wisely: 35 Women Up To No Good (Anthology containing "Moving On") — 2015
- The Best American Short Stories 2015 (Anthology containing "Moving On") — 2015
- The O. Henry Prize Stories 2016 (Anthology containing "Bounty") — 2016
- Granta 142: Animalia (Anthology containing "The Mistress") — 2018
- The New Wilderness (Novel) — 2020
Deep Dive: The Standalone Novel
The New Wilderness (2020)
Shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize, The New Wilderness is set in a future where the City is so polluted and overpopulated that children struggle to breathe. The protagonist, Bea, makes the difficult choice to join a government-sanctioned pilot program: the Community. This group of twenty volunteers leaves civilization to live as nomadic hunter-gatherers in the "Wilderness State," the last remaining tract of wild land protected from human expansion.
As they adapt to the harsh rules of nature and the strict boundaries enforced by the Wilderness Rangers, the group must learn to survive without leaving any trace of their existence. The narrative shifts focus to Bea’s daughter, Agnes, who grows up knowing the wilderness as her only true home. Cook uses this setting to examine the costs of ecological survival, maternal sacrifice, and the savage instincts that resurface when civilization is stripped away.
Deep Dive: The Short Story Collection
Man V. Nature (2014)
Diane Cook's debut collection, Man V. Nature, contains twelve darkly comedic and unsettling stories. Many of these tales feature characters facing extreme environmental conditions or bizarre social rules, highlighting human vulnerability and absurdity. Notable stories in the collection include:
- "Moving On": A dystopian story about a widow forced into an institution where she must undergo emotional reprogramming to forget her late husband and prepare for a new match. This story was also released separately as a Kindle Single.
- "Somebody’s Baby": A surreal neighborhood fable where parents must guard their newborns against a man who stands in their yards waiting to steal babies, a strange practice the community has normalized.
- "Man V. Nature": The title story, which follows three friends on a fishing trip who become stranded on a lake, leading to a desperate struggle against exposure and their own deteriorating relationships.
- "The Mast Year": A metaphorical tale about a woman whose sudden run of good fortune attracts strangers who begin camping in her yard to feed off her prosperity.
- "The Not-Needed Forest": A dark, survivalist story where a school identifies "unnecessary" boys and leaves them in a forest to fend for themselves.
- "Flotsam": A story about a woman who keeps finding clean baby clothes in her laundry, forcing her to confront her relationships and desires.
- "Girl on Girl": A sharp look at teenage competition, friendship, and the complexities of adolescent pregnancy.
- "Meteorologist Dave Santana": A satirical examination of female desire, obsession, and social projection centered on a local weatherman.
- "The Way the End of Days Should Be": A post-apocalyptic story where a man has prepared his home for a flood, only to deal with desperate neighbors seeking shelter.
Anthology Contributions and Short Fiction
In addition to her primary books, Diane Cook has published short fiction in various prestigious literary magazines (including Harper’s, Tin House, and Granta) and anthologies. Notably, her story "Bounty", which originally appeared in Harper’s, was selected for The O. Henry Prize Stories 2016. Her story "Moving On" was featured in both the dark-fiction anthology Choose Wisely: 35 Women Up To No Good (2015) and The Best American Short Stories 2015. She also contributed a story to the themed anthology issue Granta 142: Animalia in 2018.
What to Know Before You Start
Diane Cook’s writing is heavily influenced by her decade-long background as a radio producer for the program This American Life. This experience translates into a conversational, highly engaging narrative voice that grounds even her most surreal and absurd premises in real human emotion. Her prose is direct, avoiding melodramatic flourishes in favor of a matter-of-fact delivery of horrific or bizarre situations.
Readers should prepare for heavy themes: environmental dread, maternal friction, isolation, and societal breakdowns. However, these elements are balanced by her unique dark humor and sharp observations of human relationships, making her books deeply rewarding reads.