Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Nguyen, Mai
Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Nguyen, Mai

Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

A darkly humorous yet uplifting novel about a grieving mother who starts working at a funeral home...
$48.00 USD
$91.99 USD
$48.00 USD
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Author: Mai Nguyen
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Subtotal: $48.00
Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Nguyen, Mai

Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

$91.99 $48.00
Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Nguyen, Mai

Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

$91.99 $48.00
Author: Mai Nguyen
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Description
A darkly humorous yet uplifting novel about a grieving mother who starts working at a funeral home and discovers that the best way to honor the dead is to live--from the author of the "insightful, moving" (Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author) Sunshine Nails.

All Cleo Dang has ever wanted is to be a mother. The day she discovers she's pregnant is the happiest of her life, especially when she learns that her best friend, Paloma, is also expecting. It's a wonderful surprise, and together, they enjoy their pregnancies. But when they both go to the hospital in labor, something goes very, very wrong. Paloma comes home with a baby. Cleo does not.

Ravaged by grief, Cleo must now navigate life after losing her baby. She alienates herself from the world, particularly her best friend, who is living the life she so desperately wanted. Forced to take leave from her demanding job as an actuary, Cleo manages to find work at a funeral home, where she meets a revolving cast of bereaved locals and discovers the power of confronting grief.

Darkly humorous yet uplifting, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead follows a grieving mother who starts working at a funeral home and discovers that the best way to honor the dead is to live.

Author: Mai Nguyen
Publisher: Atria Books
Published: 04/14/2026
Pages: 288
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.15lbs
Size: 9.07h x 6.15w x 1.19d
ISBN: 9781668080863


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 02/01/2026
Shelf Awareness 01/01/0001
Kirkus Reviews 03/01/2026

About the Author
Mai Nguyen is a Vietnamese Canadian author whose debut novel, Sunshine Nails, was longlisted for Canada Reads and named one of the best books of 2023 by NPR and CBC. Her journalism has appeared in Wired, The Washington Post, and The Toronto Star. Raised in Halifax, she now lives in Toronto with her husband, daughter, and French bulldog.
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