By the acclaimed author of Moxie, a funny, bighearted adult debut that is at once an ode to educators, a timely glimpse at today’s pressing school issues, and a tender character study, following a sprawling cast of teachers, administrators, and staff at a Texas high school.

With its ensemble of warm and unforgettable characters, The Faculty Lounge shows readers a different side of school life. It all starts when an elderly substitute teacher at Baldwin High School is found dead in the faculty lounge. After a bit of a stir, life quickly returns to normal—it’s not like it’s the worst (or even most interesting) thing that has happened within the building’s walls. But when, a week later, the spontaneous scattering of his ashes on the school grounds catches the attention of some busybody parents, it sets in motion a year that can only be described as wild, bizarre, tragic, mundane, beautiful, and humorous all at once.

“‘This is a hell of a way to start the school year,’ announces a teacher in the opening pages of Jennifer Mathieu’s delightful novel, a celebration of teachers who remain heroically human in nearly impossible times. Likewise, The Faculty Lounge is a hell of a way to announce a major new voice in adult fiction. I loved it.”

—Steven Rowley, New York Times bestselling author of The Celebrants and The Guncle