The Book of Stan

From the author of He Who Shall Remain Shameless and The Fallible: Stories comes a tale of a divided family, a divided mind, and a divided nation…

I sing a song for my sister, who used to be my brother, who sings a song for me…

So begins the story of identical twins Stan and Jeremy Pangborn, who wrestle with one another over control of this narrative. They tell of their conflicted adolescence, the genesis of Stan’s religious obsessions, his search for both separation and absolution. But as Stan delves deeper into the folds of extremism, his grip on reality begins to unravel and his desperate attempts to control the narrative spiral into instability. 

The Book of Stan is about identity, sexuality, faith, fractured loyalty, freedom, and the lure of extremism. The Pangborn Twins’ story serves as a reflection on the flawed systems of power that shape our lives. It urges readers to confront the shadows of hypocrisy at all levels—from the living room to the Situation Room. 

Timely and at times terrifying, The Book of Stan is a gripping exploration of the ties that bind us and the forces that seek to tear us apart. In a world where personal and sexual freedoms are uncertain, this short novel is certain to provoke thought and stir emotion. 

Praise for The Book of Stan

David Ewald’s The Book of Stan is a bold, unsettling, and fiercely intelligent exploration of identity, extremism, and the human mind’s battle between truth and delusion. It’s the kind of book that doesn’t simply tell a story—it dismantles certainty.

Through the dual voices of Stan and Jeremy Pangborn identical twins whose shared history fractures under the weight of religion, ideology, and gender identity Ewald constructs a psychological and emotional labyrinth. The narrative’s shifting control between the two brothers mirrors the instability of identity itself, blurring the line between faith and fanaticism, love and resentment, reality and projection.

What makes The Book of Stan so powerful is its precision: Ewald writes with both lyricism and razor-sharp insight. The prose oscillates between tender introspection and terrifying momentum as Stan’s obsession grows, forcing readers to confront uncomfortable truths about family, belief, and the systems that shape personal freedom.

This short novel feels both timeless and urgent, a modern parable for a world at war with its own contradictions. With echoes of writers like Don DeLillo, Ottessa Moshfegh, and Paul Tremblay, The Book of Stan is literary fiction that doesn’t flinch. It interrogates extremism not as a distant political concept, but as a deeply human fracture born from fear, love, and the search for meaning.

A haunting, fearless, and essential read.

— Nicole (via Goodreads)