RAISING PANIC, a novel. Winner of the 2023 Book Award for Prose from Steel Toe Books.
Order the book at Bookshop.org here, or Amazon here, or Barnes and Noble here.
Praise for RAISING PANIC :
“Zimlich is a skilled writer who offers wonderful passages, such as this one, about a harried PJ: “But her words were limp, falling out of her like loose pages from an old book.” There are tantalizingly lush early descriptions of San Diego, suggesting a glimpse of the Promised Land. Indeed, the supposed Eden of that city and the baking desert of El Cajon suggest biblical parallels that hover over the narrative. Overall, the novel engagingly shows how kids are the ones that suffer the most in troubled families, and how things can go badly without a protector like PJ, who’s a wonderful and believable fictional creation.” – Kirkus Reviews
“Raising Panic presents both a fearless exploration of a rural family riven by alcoholism and a resounding affirmation of hope. Rhonda Zimlich is the rare author who can render the interior lives of children and adolescents with nuance and elucidate the bonds children forge with each other to survive and thrive in a world where adults too often fail them. Zimlich’s keen insights into the emotional lives of children, coupled with her gorgeous descriptions of California’s desert landscape, testify to the refuge and healing power friendship and natural beauty can provide, even in the direst of circumstances.” -Alice Hatcher, author of The Wonder That Was Ours
“Years ago, a writer lamented the wait for the great San Diego novel. I nominate Raising Panic, a startlingly affecting story about two young sisters, PJ and Panic, who are in a quest for personal and family identity. Their ache and hope is on every page, daring even to outweigh the historical tragedy of a commercial airliner plunging into a quiet San Diego neighborhood. You won’t want to let these girls out of your sight as they come to understand a world far beyond their years.” -Brian Leung, author of A Terrifying Brush with Optimism
“Raising Panic resonates with the evolving emotional coming-of-age of the resourceful PJ, desperate to protect her vulnerable younger sister from natural dangers as well as the emotional storm that is life with their mercurial mother, Betsy. Rich with sensory details, from the opening paragraph, Zimlich presents Nature as a beautifully wrought character. This poignant story of family loyalty, misguided intentions, and two devoted sisters’ bond keeps the reader cheering for PJ and Panic as they hone their survival skills in both the physical and emotional realms.” -Liza Nash Taylor, author of Etiquette for Runaways and In All Good Faith
“Raising Panic by Rhonda Zimlich is that rare wonder, a book that knows its human and non-human landscapes inside and out, and renders them with tender care. I fell hard for Panic and PJ, and for the chaparral broom and brush sage and sycamores and arroyo willows who sheltered these children, offering them protection and solace from a damaged world—when the adult world could not. This story of resiliency, spirit, and sibling love touched me to the core.” -Robin MacArthur, author of Half Wild and Heart Spring Mountain
“A deeply felt coming of age story, a meditation on grief and shared trauma, and an endlessly rich and detailed evocation of the landscapes of childhood, all in one.” -Tom Howard, author of Fierce Pretty Things
“A tender, lyrical portrait of two young sisters forced to reckon with loss and longing; set in the unrelenting California desert, Rhonda Zimlich evokes a time and place marked by tragedy and questions what it means to sacrifice for the ones we love most.”-Patricia Park, author of Imposter Syndrome and What’s Eating Jackie Oh?
“Rhonda Zimlich is a rare talent who compassionately and critically examines rural American communities for their hope and humanity. Through tragedy, sister bonds, and family secrets, Raising Panic reveals the tension between our origin stories and the rocky path of leaving home to save ourselves. This book is astonishing!” -Melissa Scholes Young, author Flood and The Hive
Rhonda Zimlich is also the winner of the 2024 Nonfiction Award from Barely South Review, the 2021 Please See Me Fiction Award for her short story, “The Gravity of Adrienne Lane.” She was awarded the 2020 Dogwood Journal Award for Nonfiction for her essay, “The Ritual of Smoking.” That same essay received an honorable mention in the Best American Essays of 2021, edited by Kathryn Schulz. Her novel manuscript, Raising Panic, was named a semi-finalist in the Hidden River Arts Eludia Award and the Petrichor Prize from Regal House. Her short story, “Blue Venus,” was a finalist in the Jerry Jazz Musician 48th Short Fiction Contest. Other publications are listed on her publication page. She holds an MFA in Writing from VCFA and teaches writing at American University. Follow her on Twitter @rhondazimlich
Rhonda Zimlich 