"From a cocooned wife to a retelling of Kafka's Metamorphosis, the women and insects of these stories refuse to be pinned up for the male gaze. These are stories as tough and exquisite as a scarab exoskeleton, as brutal and beautiful as a boiled silkworm. Each sentence rewards your close attention. Lauren Osborn is a writer to watch, and Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl is a debut as remarkable as any entomologist's collection and far more alive."--Matthew Salesses, author of The Sense of Wonder and Craft in the Real World"What would it feel like to see with insect eyes through a girl's dark heart? To embrace the natural world as you would your lover, and swallow them by degree? If Kafka's The Metamorphosis was about the transformation of Grete Samsa? Lauren Osborn's Entomology Of The Pin-Up Girl brilliantly answers all these questions and many more. You'll be happily snared as she poetically spins each of these tales into glistening webs."--Peter Kuper author of Insectopolis"A rapturous mating dance of surrealist fiction in the vein of Kafka' s The Metamorphosis, Osborn's prose dares to be both gorgeous and disturbing. Her brilliant debut of transgressive, ecological storytelling evolves as predator becomes prey."--Aimee Parkison, author of Refrigerated Music for a Gleaming Woman

"Disturbing, dangerous, and unexpectedly elegant. This debut collection grabs hard and doesn't let go as women become sublime and transcend the ordinary, and men more often than not try to thwart them. Osborn's writing is kaleidoscopic and precise, and Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl does a grand job showcasing her welcome and exciting new voice." --Rafe Posey, Third Place Books (Ravenna), Seattle, WA

"A grotesquely satisfying book that will stick with you. In Entomology of the Pin-Up Girl, Osborn has accomplished the perfect melding of 'Good for her' with an unflinching stare down the barrel of some of society's most pressing problems. This book doesn't shy away from the things that make us uncomfortable, whether that's emotion or bugs." --Cassie Goodwin, Loudmouth Books, Indianapolis, IN

"Reminiscent of Karen Russell's early short stories, this collection is simultaneously fun and deeply unsettling (in the best way)! Using both bugs and creepy body horror, Lauren Osborn explores humanity in ways that will both delight and turn your stomach. Fans of both horror and magical realism will enjoy this new talent!"--Emily Russo, PRINT: A Bookstore, Portland, ME

Publisher: Dzanc Books

Pub date: 2026-05-12

Length: 160 pages