The Rich People Have Gone Away

“Porter’s story has the signposts of a mystery and the economically stratified ensemble cast of a social novel. In chapters centered on characters whose lives are disrupted by the couple’s drama and by lockdown, people sift through pasts whose cruelties match those of their pandemic present.”—The New Yorker

“An astonishing accomplishment . . . I would greedily follow this writer anywhere. . . . This is the Covid novel you didn’t know you wanted to catch.”—The Washington Post

“Terrific . . . Inherent in any discussion of privilege must also be a discussion of race, and Porter examines these inseparable ideas with expert nuance in this novel.”—Chicago Review of Books

“Porter’s story casts clear, vivid light on community, privilege, love, loss and the human dilemma—don’t expect to put this one down ’til you’re done.”—Chronogram

“A work of great ambition and elan.”—The Guardian

“Settles its gaze on matters of race and class, underlined by its breathtaking ending . . . This restless, intentionally unsettling novel establishes Porter as a distinctive, confident literary voice.”—Kirkus Review, starred review

“Striking . . . Porter keenly explores themes of generational and racial privilege and a community’s fragile bonds. This one makes the lockdown worth revisiting.”—Publishers Weekly

“Deft and recommended.”—Library Journal

“Regina Porter weaves beauty and humor with pathos, in prose that is winding, prescient, and profound.”—Bryan Washington, author of Family Meal

“A masterpiece of human portraiture . . .”—Paul Harding, author of This Other Eden

“Riveting . . . The Rich People Have Gone Away mines the delicate and treacherous terrain in which human relationships and social divisions are rooted.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, author of Black Cake

“Regina Porter has crafted an inventive, hilarious, and wholly unpredictable work full of vibrant prose and genuine tenderness.”—Mateo Askaripour, author of Black Buck

“An immersive examination of the human condition in the face of tragedy and triumph.”—Zakiya Dalila Harris, author of The Other Black Girl

“A layer cake of suspense and a vibrantly alive portrait of several generations of New Yorkers as they fearlessly stake their anchors in the rippling sea of our era.”—Kashana Cauley, author of The Survivalists

“[The Rich People Have Gone Away] is cinematic, preternaturally humane, and absolutely unputdownable—I just loved it.”—Claire Lombardo, People, “What Your Favorite Authors Are Reading This Summer”

“A glorious jambalaya of word, thought, and feeling . . .”—Gary Shteyngart, author of Our Country Friends

“An arresting novel of race, class, food, music, and family as thrilling and dynamic as the city itself.”—Andrew Ridker, author of Hope

“A delight.”—Margot Livesey, author of The Road from Belhaven