The Beans of Egypt, Maine

Carolyn Chute · first published 1986 · ISBN 9780446300100

Chute's debut novel portrays a working-class family in rural Maine struggling with poverty, violence, and survival on the margins of American society. Through interconnected stories, the book examines family bonds, economic hardship, and the resilience of those with few resources and little hope of escape. Chute writes with unflinching honesty about lives often invisible in American literature.