Events

MHB is writing. She has no public events scheduled at this time. Events for Fall 2026 and Spring 2027 are coming soon!

  “Bertino blurs the line between writer and magician.” — Molly Young, The New York Times

NEWS

“Flowers and their Meanings,” originally published in The Baffler, has received the 2026 O. Henry Prize for Short Stories

Exit Zero has been named Electric Literature’s #1 short story collection of 2025

MHB has been named a 2025 Guggenheim Fellow in Fiction

Exit Zero reviewed in the The New York Times by Molly Young: “Through all of Exit Zero, Bertino blurs the line between writer and magician.”

“Lottie Woodside and the Diamond Dust Cher,” a new short story, published in Electric Literature’s Recommended Reading, introduced by Yuka Igarashi

“Viola in Midwinter,” originally published in Bennington Review, was selected for Best American Short Stories 2024

Beautyland is a New York Times Notable Book of 2024 and one of The Best Books of 2024 by The New York Times, Electric Literature,Time Magazine, Lit Hub, Kirkus, Goodreads, Elle Magazine, Esquire, and Bookshop.org

 Beautyland has been named one of Esquire’s 75 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time

Editor of The New York Times Book Review Gilbert Cruz discusses Beautyland