American · b. 1954
Mary Gaitskill writes about power, desire, and the body with unflinching precision. Her stories and novels explore sadomasochism, sex work, and the strange contracts people make. "Veronica" (2005) was a National Book Award finalist—a former model remembers her friendship with a woman dying of AIDS. "Bad Behavior" (1988), her debut story collection, established her territory: the margins where pleasure and damage meet. Gaitskill's prose is exact and unsentimental.