Praise
The Sound of Rabbits is a heartfelt novel of fragile love between sisters, estranged through distance and grudges, striving to find their bond, even if they don’t have the words to express it. With keen insights and spot-on descriptions, Janice Deal animates her novel with characters from a small town in Wisconsin where parents struggle to make ends meet, children seek their passions, nature is cruel, and the past is never really past.
An unflinching, yet loving, portrait of a complicated family.”
JAN ENGLISH LEARY, author of Thicker Than Blood, Skating on the Vertical, and Town and Gown
"Original, entertaining, thoughtful, and thought-provoking, "The Sound of Rabbits" is an impressive work of literary fiction and highly recommended for community, college, and university library Contemporary Literary Fiction collections."
“[Janice] Deal deftly entwines Ruby’s and Val’s introspections with slice-of-life perspectives of other characters, creating a nuanced exploration of the complications of identity, regret, family, and community.”
Below is a link to the (gated) review for those of you who subscribe to Booklist.
“Not since the abrupt—and welcome—rediscovery of Lucia Berlin’s short fictions in 2015 have I read such a marvelous story collection as Janice Deal’s Strange Attractors. In a quietly luminous and deceptively steady voice, Deal mines the lives and burdens of the generally overlooked citizens of Ephrem, Illinois, a semi-rural community college town near the Wisconsin border. She makes her gallery of strangers our intimates in the way Willa Cather once did.”
JAMES MAGRUDER, author of Vamp Until Ready
In The Decline of Pigeons, Janice Deal leads us deep into the heart of human nature to reveal the turmoil, self-delusion, and moments of unexpected clarity that accompany profound loss. I love these characters—flawed, real, and marked by compassion. And I love Deal’s voice: arresting, brave, uniquely her own. I will return to this book again and again, for the joy and sense of solace it brings me.”
KATHERINE SHONK, author of The Red Passport
and Happy Now?
Bio
JANICE DEAL is the author of a novel, The Sound of Rabbits (Regal House, 2023), and two short story collections: The Decline of Pigeons (Queen’s Ferry, 2013), and a linked collection, Strange Attractors (New Door Books, 2023). The Decline of Pigeons was a Flannery O’Connor Award finalist. The Sound of Rabbits was a finalist for both the Many Voices Project annual competition and the Black Lawrence Press Big Moose Prize. Stories from Strange Attractors won The Moth Short Story Prize and the Cagibi Macaron Prize. Janice has also received an Illinois Arts Council Artists Fellowship Award for prose. She lives with her husband in the Chicago area.
Events
& News
Wed, Jun 21The Book Cellar
Fri, Jun 23Barbara's Bookstore
Thu, Jul 06Page 158 Books
Articles
How does place inform fiction? Read Janice's essay for Women Writers, Women's Books.
Janice and Regal House get down to brass tacks and discuss the big issues — such as the importance of chocolate to writing. Read here.
Contact
To email Janice, click here
For any media inquiries, please contact publicist Sheryl Johnston:
Tel: 773-472-2254 | sheryljohnston@aol.com
Publishers:
For The Sound of Rabbits, Jaynie Royal, Regal House Publishing
For Strange Attractors, Douglas Gordon, New Door Books
Follow me: