Elizabeth Benedict

Me, My Hair and I: 27 Women Untangle an Obsession

Editor, Algonquin Books, 2015

“Truth and wisdom do such a delightful dance throughout Me, My Hair and I that you finish the essay collection wondering why we don’t spend more time, not less, obsessing over our tresses. . . A deliciously enlightening read, equal parts fun and poignant.” —Chicago Tribune

“This anthology of essays by women explores a surprising range of issues, including identity, relationships, vanity, femininity, aging, and society.” —NYTimes.com

“Here, in a series of astonishingly good essays, writers wax eloquent about the emotions wrought by our locks: ‘good hair’ and ‘bad hair’ in African-American culture; envy of our follicly gifted siblings; the quest for delusional hairstyles; and much more.”—People

“Thought-provoking and insightful, Me, My Hair, and I is a must-read for anyone who has ever dealt with frizz, gray hair, mothers insisting we get a haircut, fathers insisting we not, hair envy or hair disasters. In short, all of us.”  Book Page

What My Mother Gave Me: Thirty-one Women on the Gifts That Mattered Most

Editor, Algonquin Books, 2013

“Each essay is beautifully crafted, and editor Benedict provides the perfect balance of emotions. For anyone trying to understand mother-daughter relationships, this collection provides the answer.” ―Publishers Weekly

“Original tributes by celebrated novelists, poets and journalists detail the regard in which the writers hold their mothers or their memory of their mothers even as they contemplate complex parent/child relationships in retrospect.” ―Louisville Courier-Journal

“The complexity and soul-deep connection of the mother-daughter bond is vividly explored in this emotionally eloquent collection of essays.” ―Family Circle

“Longing, grief and hard-won forgiveness pervade this essay collection by a stellar group of writers as they take stock of the gifts, visible and invisible, their mothers left behind.” ―MORE Magazine

“ [S]ublime. . . The anthology is rich in stories and memories, and like all good books, it forces us to reflect on our own lives.” ―The Huffington Post

“Some gifts are practical, others glamorous, some explain mysteries, another incites anger. All reveal mothers’ hopes for their daughters.” ―Bust

Mentors, Muses & Monsters: 30 Writers on the People Who Changed Their Lives

Editor
Simon & Schuster; SUNY Press, 2009/2011

“Irresistible … these exceptionally animated essays feel as though the writers couldn’t get the words down quickly enough. And what an array of experiences and voices.” — Booklist

“This anthology is that rare gem, a collection whose whole is greater, even, than the sum of its parts. Where else could you read musings-about-muses, accompanied by juicy tales from deep inside the writing life, by 30 of the best minds of our generation, all between the covers of one book?” — San Francisco Chronicle

“Every essay here–from Benedict’s own remembrance of Elizabeth Hardwick to Christopher Castellani’s ‘Coming of Age at Breadloaf’–is wise and full of heart.” — Chicago Tribune

The Practice of Deceit
June 2005, Houghton-Mifflin Books

Almost
August 2001, Houghton-Mifflin Books
June 2002, Mariner Books (Paperback edition)

The Joy of Writing Sex: A Guide for Fiction Writers
June 1996, Story Press
2002, Owl Books paperback, US; Souvenir Press, UK

Safe Conduct
April 1993
Farrar, Straus & Giroux

The Beginner’s Book of Dreams
Knopf, 1988
Bantam, May 1989 and as an ebook

Slow Dancing
Knopf, 1985
McGraw-Hill 1986
Bantam 1989