Essay Photos by Mai Al-Nakib / Courtesy of the author Civilizations, empires, dynasties, and monarchies end, leaving behind ruins of their fabled splendor. Traces of achievements become more or less decipherable, contingent upon the mercy of elements and vagaries of time. Global ascents have been awesome. The point, however, is that no matter how accomplished or established the power, no matter how seemingly eternal, its passing is guaranteed. In the shadow of World War II, Walter Benjamin described the angel of history with his face turned toward the past: “Where we perceive a chain of events, he sees one single catastrophe which keeps piling wreckage upon wreckage.” Unlike most of us, the angel of history takes the long view. He bears witness to the rising debris, which periodically may initiate a state of emergency, such as genocide or war. Whether this state of emergency brings about radical transformation or more of the same cannot be determined in advance. A cursory archaeology of our planetary ruins reveals the latter to be the case more frequently. Any citizen of a failing nation-state adopting the angel of history’s long view must ask herself a series of sobering questions. Given its recent past, the parameters of its present, and the constitution of its population and leadership, how likely is it that the kind of sweeping change a country needs in order to survive will occur? Have the sacrifices of the many over... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2021-07-07 12:48:10 UTC ]
Transworld has bought UK and Commonwealth rights for memoir The Bright Field by Margaret Reynolds, professor of English at Queen Mary, University of London. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-01 08:56:53 UTC ]
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W&N has acquired Miss Aluminium, a memoir by Susanna Moore describing her experiences in Hollywood in the 1970s and her own "hard-won arrival at selfhood". Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-31 19:23:49 UTC ]
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My approach to memoir writing demands a different schedule. It may be more organized. I take notes, I write in condensed bursts. I do that with poetry also, but the process is more alchemic. It’s uncontainable. It’s fluid, I can drift in another realm. The post I Didn’t Have a Plan: The Millions... Continue reading at The Millions
[ The Millions | 2020-05-29 10:00:01 UTC ]
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Christian singer/songwriter Sandra McCracken brings her debut to B&H, Convergent signs a mother and son’s memoir about opioid addiction, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Patrik Svensson mixed natural history with memoir for his debut, which has become a surprise best seller and award winner in his native Sweden. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-05-22 09:00:23 UTC ]
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On this episode of Personal Space: The Memoir Show, Sari Botton interviews Stephanie Danler, author of the 2016 bestselling novel Sweetbitter, and now the memoir Stray, just published by Knopf. In the book, Danler poignantly tackles a variety of issues, including: the destructive nature of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-21 17:00:57 UTC ]
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"Hollywood Park," a new memoir from the frontman for the Airborne Toxic Event, recounts his childhood in L.A.'s Synanon cult — and his recovery. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2020-05-20 16:33:40 UTC ]
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Hutchinson has acquired Bananarama's memoir Really Saying Something in a "strong" six-figure deal, and will publish this October. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-20 05:26:25 UTC ]
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Stephanie Danler’s memoir Stray invites us to look closely at our own life: our family dynamics, our loss, our trauma, and the moments of happiness that still exist within that fragile frame. With deep introspection and stunning prose, Danler tells us about the years she spent after writing her... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2020-05-19 11:00:55 UTC ]
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Naomi Fry on “Miss Aluminum,” a new memoir by Susanna Moore, who is known for her 1995 thriller “In the Cut.” Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2020-05-19 10:00:00 UTC ]
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A selection of recent books of interest; plus, a peek at what our colleagues around the newsroom are reading. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-05-19 09:00:05 UTC ]
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Bonnier Books UK has acquired Kate MacDougall's story of the dog walking business she founded in her mid-twenties, London’s No1 Dog Walking Agency. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-19 04:39:15 UTC ]
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Among the big deals this week are a new book by rapper Gucci Mane, a memoir of addiction and recovery by a politician and her son, and a nonfiction book by the cocreator of Showtime’s Billions. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-15 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The juiciest fashion memoir of the year is out. But is it a tell-all, a tragedy or a harbinger of things to come? Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-05-14 15:03:20 UTC ]
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You know what they say: April showers bring May books. Here’s today’s brand-new batch coming to (virtual) bookstores near you. Consider this a friendly reminder that it’s never a bad idea to support your local indie. * Samantha Harvey, The Shapeless Unease (Grove Press) “This memoir churns deep... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-12 13:45:17 UTC ]
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Readers thought Stephanie Danler's debut novel, "Sweetbitter," was autobiography. The reality, in her memoir "Stray," is far more painfully dramatic. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2020-05-12 13:00:01 UTC ]
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On this episode of Personal Space: The Memoir Show, Sari Botton interviews Maggie Downs, author of the memoir and travelogue, Braver Than You Think: Around the World On the Trip of My (Mother’s) Lifetime about the year she spent traveling around the world, fulfilling many of her mother’s unmet... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-11 18:38:48 UTC ]
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“We are only sheltered from tragedy”, he writes in “Inventory”, “by the thin ice that we call time.” Continue reading at The Economist
[ The Economist | 2020-05-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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On this episode of Sheltering, Maris Kreizman speaks with Mikel Jollett about his memoir, Hollywood Park. Hollywood Park is about Jollett’s experience growing up in a cult, and his escape and fallout from the childhood trauma he experienced. He talks about believing his life was normal as a... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-08 19:00:54 UTC ]
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The author of “Sweetbitter” has written a memoir about the pain she’s suffered from — and caused to — those she’s loved. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-05-08 09:00:05 UTC ]
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