The novelist and short story writer on her new book about Azrael, the angel of death, her encounters with Raymond Carver and Richard Yates, and why fiction should be uncannyJoy Williams, 80, has written five novels and four story collections and is the recipient of numerous awards. Her most recent book of short stories, Concerning the Future of Souls: 99 Stories of Azrael (Tuskar Rock), was published earlier this year. Her work ranges from the philosophical examination of being, belief and morality to urgent engagements with environmental catastrophe; James Salter wrote of her that she belongs in the company of Céline and Flannery O’Connor. Born in Massachusetts, she now lives in the Sonoran desert.An earlier collection of yours was called 99 Stories of God, and now you’ve moved on to Azrael (the angel of death and transporter of souls) as the subject. What drew you to him?I read in a WS Merwin collection his translation of Hadrian’s deathbed poem to his soul – Animula vagula blandula – so sorrowful and succinct. The soul, a worthy subject. And Azrael has always fascinated me: he was death, but not death exactly. He was more a gorgeous creation of Islam. I picture him as responsible for all the souls of this ensouled Earth. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-10-19 17:00:20 UTC ]
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Nuar Alsadir explores how all types of outburst can act as conduits to our animal nature, that vibrant essence unconstrained by social code. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-18 12:14:36 UTC ]
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I discovered something about my daughter’s relationship to books: if I cry the first time we read one together, it is likely she will not want to read it again. This has happened several times, most often with books written for children about Japanese American incarceration. My daughter is... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-18 08:55:12 UTC ]
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On Episode 10 of Ursa Short Fiction, Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton welcome writer Michael A. Gonzales for part two of our deep dive into the life and work of Diane Oliver, who published six short stories before her death at age 22. (Part one of our series is here.) Diane Oliver was just a […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-17 08:51:56 UTC ]
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After she was dropped by her agent, Alex Aster turned to a books-obsessed corner of TikTok to gauge interest in her YA novel … and now Lightlark is one of the most eagerly anticipated releases of the yearHaving finally published her first novel, Alex Aster was feeling disheartened. The book had... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-16 13:32:30 UTC ]
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She burst onto the literary scene in 1985 with her debut novel, “Face,” and later grappled with the immigrant experience and dangers of the nuclear age. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-16 03:21:25 UTC ]
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Novel by writer, who lived in Devon until fatal heart attack, was made into a film starring Robert RedfordNicholas Evans, the bestselling author of The Horse Whisperer, has died at the age of 72. In a statement, United Agents said the “much-loved” writer had died following a heart attack on... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-15 10:27:18 UTC ]
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Her semi-autobiographical novel, “The Passenger,” centered on the reunion of an Auschwitz survivor and her former Nazi guard and inspired a noted opera. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-14 23:45:29 UTC ]
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On the 75th anniversary of India’s partition, scholars from the US, Canada, France, UK and Australia write about their favorite book or film that best explains the trauma of a violent division. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2022-08-12 12:16:11 UTC ]
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Going from nonfiction to fiction can be both liberating and paralyzing, Hafner explains. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-12 10:00:26 UTC ]
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Sneha, the 22-year-old protagonist of Sarah Thankam Mathews’ debut novel All This Could Be Different, is the dutiful immigrant daughter. Despite the long recession, she bagged a corporate job right after college, and a free apartment in Brewers Hill, Milwaukee. She regularly sends money home to... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-08-11 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Beloved creator of Fungus the Bogeyman and Father Christmas brought a distinctive strain of melancholy to the genre• The Snowman, the Bogeyman and Father Christmas: the world of Raymond Briggs – in pictures• Raymond Briggs obituary• Share your tributes and memories of Snowman author Raymond... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-10 07:20:39 UTC ]
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The two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize was a master storyteller who brought to life the grand sweep of time and place. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-08 16:43:22 UTC ]
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Fiction often deals with domestic matters, including family, and some of the finest short stories treat the important, though sometimes fraught, relationship between parents and their children. What makes a good parent? What if two parents disagree over what’s best for their children, or for the... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-08-08 14:00:43 UTC ]
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Worthy Books is publishing Pope Francis’s response to the pandemic in ‘A Gift of Joy and Hope’ on September 27. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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What are some of the best short stories about childhood, and the experiences of children? Although there are dozens of classic tales about those formative years, the following stories represent, for our money, some of the finest stories about children taking the rocky path of knowledge and... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-08-05 14:00:32 UTC ]
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The Society of Authors in London opens its 2023 submission program, having awarded 32 writers and illustrators with 2022 prizes. The post The UK’s Society of Authors Adds a New Disability-Focused Book Award appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-08-05 13:37:47 UTC ]
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One of the central questions I had when shaping my story collection, Proof of Me, was how to invite into it a unified feel, how to place each story to be in conversation—geographically, thematically, linearly—with what follows. I also sought for each story to stand on its own, offering a... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-08-05 11:00:00 UTC ]
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It's taken 35 years, but Neil Gaiman believes he's done the impossible: adapt his hugely successful comic book The Sandman for the screen. He just had to wait until everything about movies, TV and media consumption changed before he could do it. ... Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2022-08-05 08:00:00 UTC ]
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Bora Chung soars into the unchartered territory of the imagination with her stunning, provocative collection of stories. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-05 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Year-to-date hardback revenues were down 7.5 percent in May at US$1.2 billion, paperbacks up 8.7 percent for $1.3 billion. The post American Publishers’ StatShot: US Industry Down 3.7 Percent in May appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-08-01 22:50:37 UTC ]
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