Tent City

By Amy L. Bernstein

"In an uncomfortably familiar present, Amy L. Bernstein shows us how fine the line is between economic safety and essential survival. She puts us at the precipice of-and allows us to peer over the edge into-a community's struggle against inexorable pressures. Bernstein's thrillingly perceptive story asks "Where does individual and collec tive responsibility start and end?" and imagines for us what happens when we don't have answers. Captivating and horrifying, Tent City is everything a novel should be."-Amy Goldmacher, Terms & Conditions

"Bernstein writes with compassion and empathy while unflinchingly facing hard truths. Tent City is a cautionary tale about the uncertainty of our collective future and the choices we make today."-Liisa Kovala, Like Water for Weary Souls

"In Tent City, Amy L. Bernstein demonstrates fiction's power to drill to the heart of the human situation, sans sugar coating, without pulling any punches. The world she shows us is not dystopian. Rather her char acters, young, middle-aged, and older are ordinary people making the most of the hands dealt them. As we see their lives play out, we learn the fragility of human experience, and we examine our place among our brothers, sisters, parents, and friends."-Stephen Woodfin, The Warrior with Alzheimer's, a Kirkus best book of the year

Does the end of prosperity start at home?

A striving family. A collapsing economy. A tragic death. In Tent City, everyone must confront their demons in the struggle to survive.

Tent City is a contemporary dystopian family saga that places ordinary citizens in extraordinary circumstances, precipitated by dire economic disruption. As the American town of Willing crumbles under a collapsing economy, hundreds seek refuge in the dense "city" of tents that spring up in the Kings' big backyard, setting the once-thriving King family on a collision course with disillusionment, disaster, and for some, a new and hopeful beginning. This family saga revolves around trust and betrayal, love and loyalty, and the will to survive the breakdown of the American Dream.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1948598914
• ISBN13: 9781948598910
• Release Date: March 2026
• Publisher: Open Books Publishing (UK)
• Length: 266 Pages
• Weight: 0.79 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"