Under the Neon Sun
Unable to afford rent, Mia—a community college student—lives out of her car, cleaning houses of the well-to-do in the LA area to meet her shoestring budget. Then Covid hits, and everything changes.
For people living in houses and apartments, with stay-at-home jobs, the pandemic was inconvenient. For Mia—a student and housekeeper whose budget is so tight she lives in her car—the pandemic destroys the very source of her paltry income. Fortunately, gutsy and funny Mia is a determined survivor. After weeks of cutting her limited spending even further, missing meals along the way, her wealthy employers become desperate for her services again. This time, she’s determined not to let them take advantage of her as they have in the past. Her newfound confidence gives her new hope as she works to escape the shackles of poverty on her own terms. Sally Rooney meets Elizabeth Strout in this brilliant fiction debut.
Kate Gale is the co-founder and managing editor of Red Hen Press, which has been publishing for more than thirty years in Los Angeles. She is also the author of seven books of poetry including The Goldilocks Zone and The Loneliest Girl, as well as several librettos including Rio de Sangre with Don Davis—who wrote the music to the Matrix movies. Kate grew up in an intentional community. From those beginnings, she has put herself through school, ultimately receiving a Ph.D. in English literature from Claremont Graduate University. Since 1989, she has taught writing at universities in Los Angeles every semester, and has also taught publishing at Oxford, Columbia University, Harvard University, and USC. She served as president of PEN USA from 2005–2006. Currently, Kate teaches publishing and poetry at Chapman University and lives in Los Angeles.
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