Thieves

Werder debuts with a lush if alienating story of a young woman’s uneasy coming-of-age. Growing up in Buffalo, N.Y., Valerie and her younger sister Julie become adept at shoplifting cosmetics. Later, in 2011, Valerie lives in the Hudson Valley town of Fishkill with her pompous boyfriend, Neel, and commutes to Manhattan for a graduate program. Frustrated by Neel’s lack of sexual desire for her, Valerie decides to move to the city with Julie and her friend Leila, a counselor in training. She lands a job at an art gallery and later meets Ted, a seasoned shoplifter who coaxes her back into a life of stealing. Ted and Valerie fall into a rhythm of bold thefts —groceries, a bottle of Dom Perignon, and wireless headphones, among other items—with Ted’s ex, Virginia, while Valerie takes an unpaid sabbatical from her job. Her arrest in a high-end boutique sets in motion a run-in with the law that sends her to a very dark place. Werder’s prose is gorgeous, but the meandering plot, bizarre tangents (including a detailed dream in which the women of New York are replaced by cyborg bodies), and philosophizing have a narrow appeal. This is meaty but frustrating. (Aug.)