For The Book Obsessed
[ad_1] Let’s be real: end of the year book lists are incredibly subjective. They end up being a roundup of books that whoever the person putting the list together loved. And there’s obviously a wide gap between what was published versus what this particular person read. And yet, I personally love these roundup lists, especially … Read more
[ad_1] Short stories demand more of the reader (and writer) than a novel, which is why I’ve long preferred the latter. Novels are more forgiving, their expansiveness allows for meandering. But short fiction requires more attention to each line, each carefully crafted detail. A short story isn’t a mini-novel, but the best ones often hint … Read more
[ad_1] While award-winning creative flutist, composer, and bandleader Nicole Mitchell Gantt is no longer based in Chicago, she has certainly left a legacy. She was the first woman president of Chicago’s Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) and founder of the Black Earth Ensemble (BEE), “a musical celebration of the African American cultural … Read more
[ad_1] I’ve long been fascinated by the composition of our lives—how pains and traumas, tiny joys, and mundane moments collide with others’ experiences and are set against global catastrophes. I remember wishing I could find a novel that conveyed this, but I didn’t find one that quite did until Coco Picard’s debut novel, The Healing … Read more
[ad_1] One of my favorite things about reading fiction is that it allows us to study contradictions within people: How we appear to someone who doesn’t know us well can be very different from who we actually are. This disconnect between our public and private selves is a veritable playground for fiction writers to explore, … Read more
[ad_1] Narrative structure impacts when we take in information, and how we read a story. Doubtful Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go would have the same impact if we knew from page one what was happening, and surely Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony wouldn’t be as masterful if narrated linearly. In the same way, Michelle Hart’s … Read more
[ad_1] Among the array of ignorant comments some Americans make about immigrants is one that anyone is lucky to live here. Setting aside this country’s terrible history (and very flawed present), such reductionist remarks ignore the significant costs of leaving one’s home country. Sindya Bhanoo’s debut story collection, Seeking Fortune Elsewhere, confronts these tolls head-on, … Read more
[ad_1] Sometimes, when characters are truly iconic, t-shirts are made with their names. There’s one with characters from A Little Life, “Jude & JB & Willem & Malcolm,” because, regardless of what one thinks of Hanya Yanagihara’s novel, these four undeniably come to life over those eight hundred-plus pages. Destiny O. Birdsong’s debut novel, Nobody’s … Read more
[ad_1] The first story in any collection sets the tone and expectations, so Cara Blue Adams’ decision to begin her linked collection, You Never Get It Back, with a rather metaphorical story is striking. But Adams isn’t afraid to make bold choices in her fiction, and it’s little wonder this debut collection won this year’s … Read more
[ad_1] Jenny Holzer’s art demands to be seen. For those unfamiliar with her work, Holzer is a neo-conceptual American artist known for delivering ideas through words in public spaces, such as projections on buildings, and benches etched with truisms. But in Alfaguara Prize-winning author Carla Guelfenbein’s new novel, One in Me I Never Loved translated … Read more