For The Book Obsessed
[ad_1] Early North American colonial history often gets short shrift in the standard American history classroom. Once the pilgrims have celebrated their first Thanksgiving, the syllabus typically vaults forward in search of the excitement and glamour of 1776. While the era between these two events may not make the marquee of American history, Nicole Eustace … Read more
[ad_1] What’s the ideal length of a piece of writing for a film adaptation? Novels would seem to be the most obvious answer, though in recent years their domain has shifted somewhat from the multiplex to prestige television miniseries. Novellas hit the sweet spot with page counts that align roughly with the length of the … Read more
[ad_1] Open Water, the debut novel by Caleb Azumah Nelson, begins when a barber notices the unnamed protagonist exchanging gazes in the mirror with a woman getting her hair cut. The barber says: “You two are in something. I don’t know what it is, but you guys are in something. Some people call it a … Read more
[ad_1] Tell somebody that you’re trans and the egg-hunt begins. The acquaintance that popped in for brunch tries to decipher you, to catalog evidence that indicates transformation. The proof of change could be anywhere though, most noticeably, hiding under your lip or reverberating in your voice, but there are less discernible spots too, things they … Read more
[ad_1] Occasionally a novel comes along that stretches the formal limits of language on the page. A novel that bends the rules, that glides past the barriers that we had assumed were unassailable, firmly entrenched around our preconceived notions of fiction and form. It’s somehow odd that we are surprised each time this occurs, as … Read more
[ad_1] T.S. Eliot aside, April, with its changeable weather and motion, seems a peculiar month to designate for all things poetry. Yet, as one of the most contrary months of the calendar, it’s perfect: poetry is the country of flexible words and contexts and sometimes startling shifts in a single stanza, the way you need … Read more
[ad_1] While Michelle Zauner may be best known by her musical project, Japanese Breakfast, she writes with an equivalent passion. As someone relatively unfamiliar with her music, it is in writing that I knew her first. I came across the essay “Crying in H Mart” years ago in The New Yorker. It resonated with me, … Read more
[ad_1] Before Ralph Ellison’s unnamed narrator took residence beneath the surface of the world in Invisible Man, there was Fred Daniels—the protagonist of Richard Wright’s long-awaited novel, The Man Who Lived Underground. The tragic tale of Daniels was borne from a lifetime of experiences, which Wright explains in the accompanying essay, “Memories of My Grandmother.” … Read more
[ad_1] Science fiction dystopias are often deployed as a means of examining politics, ideology, or technology, but for Izumi Suzuki, the medium serves an intimate exploration of anxiety, pain, and sadness. The translated stories collected in Terminal Boredom depend on science fiction dystopias, but focus on characters who are broken and seeking their own personal … Read more
[ad_1] I have known Angela Buck for sometime. We went to graduate school together at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, where I knew her to be funny, thoughtful, and incredibly talented. Her new story collection, Horses Dream of Money, exemplifies all of those qualities. The collection blurs horror and humor, fantasy and realism. It highlights the … Read more