Billed as ‘a therapeutic novel’, the publisher’s first foray into fiction follows 29-year-old Anna’s mental health journey – with a view to helping the reader. But how useful can such clunky writing be?At 29 years old, Anna is full of self-loathing. She hates her job, her boyfriend is having an affair and her parents’ response to her troubles is indifferent at best. This is the starting point for A Voice of One’s Own, the first novel to be published by The School of Life. In its pages, fiction and self-help make for uneasy bedfellows.Co-founded by philosopher Alain de Botton in 2008, The School of Life broadly aims to teach its “students” how to lead calmer, more fulfilling lives. Its publishing arm, launched in 2016, disseminates self-help literature with pithy titles such as Reasons to be Hopeful and A Simpler Life, which purport to blend philosophical wisdom with practical advice. Like De Botton himself, the books are Marmite; while many critique the school for peddling watered-down pop philosophy, its teachings have clearly found a market. The organisation has branches in seven major cities, and its most popular title, Big Ideas for Curious Minds, has sold over 120,000 copies globally, while its workshops on playfulness, confidence and self-awareness regularly sell out. The new book represents a departure, however. Through A Voice of One’s Own, The School of Life is showing, rather than telling, its readers how to live better. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2023-07-07 15:45:50 UTC ]
Author says she won’t revisit the beloved character because it would seem ‘inappropriate’ to discuss her sex lifeJacqueline Wilson has said she would feel “very wary” about writing an adult novel about Tracy Beaker “because it would seem inappropriate that we would learn about her sex life”.Last... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-05-30 15:19:35 UTC ]
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As a teenager, I remember reading my first novel in verse. I never expected to like poetry. But just a ... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-05-29 11:30:00 UTC ]
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Feature image © Sarra Fleur Abou-El-Haj. There are echoes of Virginia Woolf throughout Honor Jones’ masterful, exquisitely crafted first novel Sleep, which explores the ways in which a childhood trauma haunts her main character, Margaret, and those around her. The novel opens with scenes of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-27 07:15:09 UTC ]
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Thirteen years ago, my first novel was published. One of the first reviews it received on Amazon dismissed me as “just another Irish mouther of words.” I was, I have to say, more than a little bit insulted. I am circumspect to the point of obsession about the language I use when I write.... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-21 08:53:59 UTC ]
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Andreas Roman is the author of the newly released The Greatest Game of All (Flare Books), his first novel in English. A native speaker and writer of Swedish, Roman wrote The Greatest Game of All in English, then assisted its translation into Swedish for publication before revising the English... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-16 08:58:34 UTC ]
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While the novel remains a high-status cultural form, video game writing is still seen as a throwaway art – despite some of the biggest names in fiction being involvedI’ve been working in games for a little more than 15 years, and the main thing I’d say about it at this point is that it’s a... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-04-30 08:00:17 UTC ]
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For his first novel in nine years, Wally Lamb draws on his battles with self-doubt and addiction. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-03-14 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Discussing Dream Count, her first novel in 12 years, the Nigerian author shares her thoughts on masculinity, political chaos, and the future of fiction. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2025-03-07 12:00:00 UTC ]
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The Nigerian American author’s first novel in 12 years depicts troubled relations between men and women—but no tidy resolutions. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2025-03-05 12:00:00 UTC ]
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In her first novel since “Americanah,” she draws on a real-life assault as she follows the lives of three Nigerian women and one of their former housekeepers. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-03-02 10:00:13 UTC ]
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Dan Houser will publish his debut novel A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath, an adaptation of his hit podcast, this fall. The book is the first title from the new publishing arm of his entertainment company, Absurd Ventures. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A prolific novelist, poet, painter and soothsayer, he was inspired by the chaos of his country and published the first novel written entirely in Haitian Creole. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-02-27 01:53:19 UTC ]
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Elyse Durham’s immersive and thematically timely first novel centers on twin sisters, born during the Siege of Leningrad, trained as ballet dancers at the celebrated Vaganova, and launching their careers at the height of the Cold War. The plot is set to detonate at a critical point in the Cold... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-02-18 09:57:15 UTC ]
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The book 'Lion' comes at a time of incalculable loss for Sonya Walger, who lost her home in the Palisades fire. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2025-02-04 11:00:34 UTC ]
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As fans snap up copies of ‘Onyx Storm’ the #1 (and #2) book in the country, author Rebecca Yarros is regrouping, swiftly. Plus Han Kang’s first novel since her Nobel Prize win, ‘We Do Not Part,’ debuts on our list, and Aurora Ascher has sympathy for the devil. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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