Initially, I watched Hana Gartner interviewing Margaret Atwood on “Take 30” Sept. 27, 1977 as a complement to Dancing Girls, and ostensibly that’s the subject. But it’s more interesting as an example of the kind of preconceptions and judgements Atwood’s faced throughout her career. You don’t learn about the
In November, Naomi and Sarah are hosting a readalong for The Story Girl, so the last time I packed up my bookbag, I stuck in my copy of Elizabeth Waterston’s Magic Island (2008) to read her chapter on L.M. Montgomery’s 1911 novel. Story Girl reads like a collection of
Part of the appeal of MARM for me is a sense of having reserved the month. When I heard about Old Babes in the Wood, I thought, November! And that, simultaneously, seems to create an opportunity for other reading, in the remaining eleven months. (Next year, I think I
It’s a tough industry when a magazine as amazing as Freeman’s can’t make it. I said the same thing about Tin House, The Believer, and Bookforum too—the latter have resumed publication recently—and I don’t subscribe to them all myself. In the recent Lithub piece, “On the Ending of a
This year, I’ve been reading backlisted titles I’ve missed along the way. These are mostly well-known titles by established writers, which is why they’re still occupying library space; of these ten, only the two from small presses (named) might be difficult to find overseas. They also lean towards international
