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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After 50 years, the prize has been scrapped. How did it change Britain’s literary landscape? And what happened at the awards when Margaret Drabble was seated next to Theresa May?Margaret Drabble was a bright young star with five novels to her name in 1971, when she was talked into joining her... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-06-23 05:00:38 UTC ]
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What are some of the best, and best-known, short stories that feature animals? Many classic stories feature other species in prominent roles, whether it’s talking cats, dogs telling us their life stories, or primates giving academic reports at a conference (yes, really). Below, we select and... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-06-17 14:00:51 UTC ]
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The 75-year-old writer has penned more than 300 titles, sold more than 500m copies and is worth an estimated $800mThe bestselling author James Patterson has apologized for saying white male authors face “another form of racism”.In an interview with the Sunday Times, Patterson said white male... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-06-15 18:35:13 UTC ]
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As the Danish physicist Niels Bohr probably never said, ‘predictions are hard, especially about the future.’ And although the job of authors of science fiction and speculative fiction isn’t to make accurate predictions about what our future lives might look like, but to entertain us by tapping... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-06-15 14:00:18 UTC ]
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Genuinely classic and canonical short stories with twist endings are hard to find. For the ‘twist’ to be a true surprise, it needs to appear to come out of nowhere while also being completely credible, so we as readers don’t feel cheated. It should also be a twist in the […] Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-06-10 14:00:35 UTC ]
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Two economic historians examine the evidence and conclude that immigrants are more a benefit than a burden. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-06-10 12:00:12 UTC ]
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Do you like the Best American series? Of course you do! Each book in the annual series showcases of best short fiction and nonfiction in a given year, from short stories to essays, travel writing, to food writing. Each volume’s series editor selects notable works from hundreds of magazines,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-06 14:51:57 UTC ]
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In 2014, book critic Dwight Garner published a lament in the New York Times for a seemingly forgotten literary masterpiece, the oral history All God’s Dangers. Published in 1974 by then-Harvard doctoral candidate Theodore Rosengarten, the autobiography was narrated by Nate Shaw, an illiterate... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-06 08:51:52 UTC ]
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Fathers are often domineering or formative presences in fiction, and the following classic short stories all focus on the important influence of fathers on their children, even though, in at least one of the stories listed here, the father is absent from the story itself. These stories are among... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-06-03 14:00:08 UTC ]
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Sixty years ago, the United States and the Soviet Union led the world in climate change science then spent decades ignoring or denying the science they had pioneered, two books show. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-27 16:18:47 UTC ]
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Family plays an important part in much fiction, of course, but sometimes the short story form has offered us an insight into family life that the longer novel does not. Because it can only provide us with a few snapshots, or a handful of moments, perhaps even just one episode […] Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-05-27 14:00:35 UTC ]
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Nina LaCour's first novel for adults, "Yerba Buena," follows a promising and complicated lesbian love story in the mold of Sarah Waters. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-05-26 13:00:31 UTC ]
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An 18-year-old student and a 98-year-old survivor teamed up to write “Lily’s Promise,” a best-selling memoir of Auschwitz and its aftermath. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-05-26 09:00:09 UTC ]
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Sisters confront racism with humor, a fantasy novelist delves into short stories, a military history expert salutes the civil rights movement, and a movie star's memoir goes behind the scenes. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-05-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Industry experts discussed the normalization of working from home, the dearth of in-person networking in the age of Covid-19, new expectations among a younger generation of publishing professionals, and more on the second day of the 2022 U.S. Book Show. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-05-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The Art of Losing (Farrar, Straus and Giroux) by French novelist Alice Zeniter has won the prestigious Dublin Literary Award, a prize which comes with a handsome glass trophy and the world’s largest purse for a single novel published in English—a whopping €100,000. Nominations for the Dublin... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-05-24 16:21:57 UTC ]
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She spent decades campaigning for social change, fighting to limit air pollution in New York City and to rethink conventional yardsticks for economic development. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-23 23:59:08 UTC ]
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What happens when animation geeks get the greenlight to produce whatever they want? You get Netflix's Love, Death and Robots, an anthology series that's meant to remind viewers that cartoons aren't just for kids. You'd think that would be a foregone conclusion in 2022, decades after anime has... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2022-05-21 13:00:32 UTC ]
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A selection of books published this week; plus, a peek at what our colleagues around the newsroom are reading. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-05-20 20:53:25 UTC ]
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His books about the Great Chicago Fire and America’s first epidemic were Newbery Honor winners. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-19 22:43:48 UTC ]
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