People Who Live Alone Talk Too Much

Winner of the 2024 Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing, People Who Live Alone Talk Too Much pulls at the threads of daily life, unwinding the ordinary into scenes of humor, introspection, and surprising connection.

Bursting with wit and unexpected warmth, Sofi Stambo's debut welcomes readers in the the vibrant immigrant enclaves of New York, a city of many faces: Little Italy, Little Odessa, Little Sofia. . . Here, transplants dance and laugh their way out of absurd situations and into even messier ones. As they pass through diners, offices, and painter’s workshops, they cast about for new words to match their new realities, reshaping the English language with fresh purpose and greeting chaos with a grin.

Nimble and daring, Stambo's stories lean into curiosity, family, and the old-world bonds that draw her motley characters together.