Podcast appearances and mentions of charles baxter

For some reason, human beings don't seem to be content just thinking about their own death: they insist on imagining the end of the entire world. In this episode, Jacke talks to author Dorian Lynskey (Everything Must Go: The Stories We Tell About the End of the World), who immersed himself in apocalyptic films and literature to discover exactly what doomsday prophets have been saying for the past few millennia - and what that can tell us about the people and cultures that listened. PLUS Charles Baxter (Blood Test: A Comedy, The Feast of Love) stops by to discuss his choice for the last book he will ever read. Additional listening: 63 Chekhov, Bellow, Wright, and Fox (with Charles Baxter) 652 Writing a Comic Novel (with Charles Baxter) 277 George Orwell The music in this episode is by Gabriel Ruiz-Bernal. Learn more at gabrielruizbernal.com. Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/donate. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Humans are one species on a planet of millions of species. The literary collection Creature Needs is a project that grew out of a need to do something with grievous, anxious energy—an attempt to nourish the soul in a meaningful way, and an attempt to start somewhere specific in the face of big, earthly challenges and changes, to create a polyvocal call to arms about animal extinction and habitat loss and the ways our needs are interconnected. The book's editors, Christopher Kondrich, Lucy Spelman, and Susan Tacent, are joined here in conversation.More about the book: Creature Needs is published in collaboration with the nonprofit organization Creature Conserve. The following writers contributed new literary works inspired by scientific articles: Kazim Ali, Mary-Kim Arnold, Ramona Ausubel, David Baker, Charles Baxter, Aimee Bender, Kimberly Blaeser, Oni Buchanan, Tina Cane, Ching-In Chen, Mónica de la Torre, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Thalia Field, Ben Goldfarb, Annie Hartnett, Sean Hill, Hester Kaplan, Donika Kelly, Robin McLean, Miranda Mellis, Rajiv Mohabir, Kyoko Mori, David Naimon, Craig Santos Perez, Beth Piatote, Rena Priest, Alberto Ríos, Eléna Rivera, Sofia Samatar, Sharma Shields, Eleni Sikelianos, Maggie Smith, Juliana Spahr, Tim Sutton, Jodie Noel Vinson, Asiya Wadud, Claire Wahmanholm, Marco Wilkinson, Jane Wong.About the editors:Christopher Kondrich, poet in residence at Creature Conserve, is author of Valuing, winner of the National Poetry Series, and Contrapuntal. His writing has been published in The Believer, The Kenyon Review, and The Paris Review.Lucy Spelman is founder of Creature Conserve, a nonprofit dedicated to combining art with science to cultivate new pathways for wildlife conservation. A zoological medicine veterinarian, she teaches biology at the Rhode Island School of Design and is author of National Geographic Kids Animal Encyclopedia and coeditor of The Rhino with Glue-On Shoes.Susan Tacent, writer in residence at Creature Conserve, is a writer, scholar, and educator whose fiction has been published in Blackbird, DIAGRAM, and Tin House Online.Episode references:The Lord God Bird by Chelsea Steubayer-Scudder in Emergence MagazineThinking Like a Mountain by Jedediah Purdy in n+1Praise for the book:A thought-provoking and emotionally resonant read that stands out for its lyrical prowess and formal innovation, making it a significant contribution to contemporary literature as well as a key volume bridging the gap between the worlds of science and art.”—Library JournalCreature Needs: Writers Respond to the Science of Animal Conservation is available from University of Minnesota Press.

Acclaimed novelist Charles Baxter joins Fiction/Non/Fiction hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to discuss his recent novel Blood Test: A Comedy. Baxter talks about turning to humor in dark times, the burden of expectations, and writing a protagonist, Brock Hobson, who some readers love and others detest. He discusses how seeing websites and ads that predicted his likes and dislikes led to him inventing a fictional company, Geronomics, which predicts a certain future for Brock and is invested in that scenario playing out one way or another. Baxter also analyzes the craft of writing an antagonist who is a Trumper, but who is never explicitly identified as such. He reads from Blood Test. To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/. This podcast is produced by Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan. Selected Readings: Charles Baxter Blood Test: A Comedy Wonderlands: Essays on the Life of Literature Gryphon Burning Down the House: Essays on Fiction There's Something I Want You to Do The Art of Subtext: Beyond Plot Shadow Play Others: Fiction/Non/Fiction Season 5 Episode 33: "The Politics of Craft: Charles Baxter on How His Essays on Writing Respond to a Changing World" Fiction/Non/Fiction Season 4 Episode 6: "Hope on the Horizon: Charles Baxter and Mike Alberti on Despair and Renewal in Fiction" Fiction/Non/Fiction Season 1 Episode 4: "We're All Russian, Now" Humboldt's Gift by Saul Bellows Oedipus Rex by Sophocles Macbeth by Shakespeare Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's show, Isaac Butler (Supreme Friend of the Show and author of The Method:‌ How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act) sits in for Dana. First, the panel is quite verbose about Say Nothing, a limited series that takes place over four generations and is set during The Troubles in Northern Ireland. By dramatizing the real-life events recounted in Patrick Radden Keefe's 2018 bestseller, the adapted limited series achieves something quite rare: enriching the original text and imbuing it with new meaning. Then, they unpack Emilia Pérez, an utterly captivating musical by writer-director Jacques Audiard that's about gender transition, drug cartels, and becoming yourself. Finally, the trio discusses Carson the Magnificent, a new biography of the mysterious late-night pioneer that Isaac recently reviewed for The New Yorker. In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel answers a listener question from James: “Are there cultural works that you fully intend to see or experience, but are waiting for an optimal way to do it?” Email us at culturefest@slate.com.  Endorsements: Isaac: Blood Test by Charles Baxter.   Julia: Zoe Saldaña in Center Stage. Steve: Alice Neel's appearance on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show in 1984. Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong.  Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond's yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond's YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's show, Isaac Butler (Supreme Friend of the Show and author of The Method:‌ How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act) sits in for Dana. First, the panel is quite verbose about Say Nothing, a limited series that takes place over four generations and is set during The Troubles in Northern Ireland. By dramatizing the real-life events recounted in Patrick Radden Keefe's 2018 bestseller, the adapted limited series achieves something quite rare: enriching the original text and imbuing it with new meaning. Then, they unpack Emilia Pérez, an utterly captivating musical by writer-director Jacques Audiard that's about gender transition, drug cartels, and becoming yourself. Finally, the trio discusses Carson the Magnificent, a new biography of the mysterious late-night pioneer that Isaac recently reviewed for The New Yorker. In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel answers a listener question from James: “Are there cultural works that you fully intend to see or experience, but are waiting for an optimal way to do it?” Email us at culturefest@slate.com.  Endorsements: Isaac: Blood Test by Charles Baxter.   Julia: Zoe Saldaña in Center Stage. Steve: Alice Neel's appearance on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show in 1984. Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong.  Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond's yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond's YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jacke talks to award-winning novelist and short story writer Charles Baxter about his new book, Blood Test: A Comedy, which the New York Times says "provides a snapshot of a troubled America, disguised as a speculative comedy...a quiet masterpiece." PLUS Bill Eville (Washed Ashore: Family, Fatherhood, and Finding Home on Martha's Vineyard) stops by to discuss his choice for the last book he will ever read. Additional listening: 63 Chekhov, Bellow, Wright, and Fox (with Charles Baxter) 612 Family Matters (with Bill Eville) 429 Books I Have Loved (with Charles Baxter, Margot Livesey, and Jim Shepard) The music in this episode is by Gabriel Ruiz-Bernal. Learn more at gabrielruizbernal.com. Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/donate. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's getting cold, the election season has been busy, and we're reading books all over the map. Sam's on a philosophical bent and just saw "The Wild Robot"; Hannah's mildly unprepared, but rallies. All told, we tackle: - "The Other Valley," by Scott Alexander Howard, which explores regret, but has some weird world-building.  - "Blood Test," by Charles Baxter, who you should know, and has penned a story about a blood test for propensity for murder.  - "Interview with the Vampire," by Anne Rice, which holds up great and is not an easy book and engages with serious philosophical questions.  - "Colored Television," by Danzy Senna, about middled-aged artists who get to pretend to be rich and make bad choices.  - "The Wild Robot," by Peter Brown, which we talk about mostly because Sam saw the movie. It's not as good as the book. Shocker! And then we finish up with some Christmas stuff because Matt Tavares is coming to the Farms on Dec. 7, which will be great. 

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love, nominated for the National Book Award, First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have appeared in several anthologies, including The Best American Short Stories, The Pushcart Prize Anthology, and The O. Henry Prize Story Anthology. He has won the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story. Baxter lives in Minneapolis.  His new novel is Blood Test. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New Yorker writer Susan Glasser says Musk has spent $75 million to support Trump. If elected, Trump promises to appoint Musk to head a commission to cut costs in every part of the federal government.Maureen Corrigan reviews the satirical novel Blood Test by Charles Baxter.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Yorker writer Susan Glasser says Musk has spent $75 million to support Trump. If elected, Trump promises to appoint Musk to head a commission to cut costs in every part of the federal government.Maureen Corrigan reviews the satirical novel Blood Test by Charles Baxter.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Beth Golay recently spoke with Charles Baxter about comedic writing and some of the real world businesses that predict our future actions in order to make money.

150 Years Ago (March 1874) After The Peekskill Messenger boasted that Mr. Sutton was the longest-serving church choir director on the East Coast, having been at Second Presbyterian for 34 years, The Cold Spring Recorder countered that Mr. Barrows had been at the Episcopal church in the village for the same amount of time. The Recorder reported that "temperance people congratulate each other [on progress made to make alcohol illegal] and hope the day is not distant when every whiskey cask will be knocked in the head." The Cold Spring Board of Trustees proposed a budget of $3443.50 [about $89,000 today], including $600 [$15,500] for street cleaning, $400 to pave the Main Street crosswalks and $200 to deepen the Paulding Avenue well. Charles Baxter sued Oscar Organ for $100 [$2,700], alleging that he quit before completing an eight-month contract as a laborer. Oscar's father, C.J., offered $39.85 to settle - the wages left to be paid - but Baxter refused. A jury awarded $40. The Recorder noted that a Western Union agent traveled on the Hudson River Railroad. For a small additional fee, passengers could have telegraphs delivered to any station on the line. John Dougherty, employed by Capt. George Wise, was arrested in Cold Spring for public intoxication. While awaiting transfer to the county jail, he told Officer Morrison that he had information to offer: He had witnessed the killing of a railroad watchman at the 30th Street depot in New York City and could provide the names of the gang members involved. Stephen Davenport escaped serious injury when a cow protecting her calf placed her horns on either side of his thigh and threw him. The cow was after a dog that had taken refuge behind its master. Howard Dykeman was playing on a soft couch when a threaded needle went into his leg, eye first. The doctors put the boy under ether but decided it was too deep to remove. The Recorder reported that, "like hundreds of letters," three soldiers found themselves in Cold Spring instead of Cold Spring Harbor, on Long Island. J.G. Southard lent them $10 to buy return train tickets. The newly formed Cold Spring Total Abstinence Society met at Town Hall. Vincent Merritt reported finding two horse blankets on the Breakneck road. William West, 34, of Philipstown, died from head injuries sustained when he jumped or fell from a train as it passed near Cortlandt. He and Thomas Avery, who were traveling together, had asked the conductor and engineer to slow the train so they could jump off. When they refused, West ran to the back of the last car but Avery said he did not see in what manner he left the train. Seeing his friend tumbling beside the tracks, Avery jumped after him but was not injured. Two cows owned by Richard Denny in North Highlands found their way into the barn and ate so much feed that they died. His loss was about $100. 125 Years ago (March 1899) Prof. Treat of Garrison caused a stir while walking his 25 performing dogs around Highland Falls before an appearance. Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Sherwood hosted a party for their neighbors. Grace Sherwood and Ethel Briggs each played the organ while guests elsewhere studied the somber pictures of Milton's Paradise Lost. The gentlemen smoked and argued about the duties of town officers. Supper was served at 10 p.m. St. Philip's Church in Garrison hosted a stereopticon viewing at the Reading Room of a wheeling trip and the cathedrals of England. A submarine mine that was taken out of Santiago of Philipstown harbor in 1898 during the Spanish-American War in Cuba arrived at West Point for its ordnance museum after being cleaned of its tropical barnacles and painted black. It was said to be exactly like the one that blew up the USS Maine in Havana harbor, killing 268 sailors. The Union News Co. secured the option to place bootblack stands at all stations of the Central Hudson, including Cold Spring. The Recorder noted that a well-own document dated at West Point, Aug. 19, 1783, gave the weight of its ...

Estratto dal racconto "Credenti" di Charles BaxterRaccolta di racconti "Credenti" - Mattioli 1885Traduzione di Francesca Cosi e Alessandra Repossi

Estratto dal racconto "Credenti" di Charles BaxterRaccolta di racconti "Credenti" - Mattioli 1885Traduzione di Francesca Cosi e Alessandra Repossi

 Meg Wolitzer presents three provocative works about rituals that reshape and define their characters. In “oh she gotta head fulla hair,” by Ntozake Shange, a woman's attention to her hair consumes her life. The reader is Tamara Tunie. In “Half a Day,” by Naguib Mahfouz, performed by Bruce Altman, time collapses and a lifetime goes by in a flash. And in Charles Baxter's “Fenstad's Mother,” a mother and son rehearse old patterns and find new ones. The reader is Edie Falco.

Peter Turchi is the author of seven books and the co-editor of three anthologies. His books include (Don't) Stop Me if You've Heard This Before; A Muse and A Maze: Writing as Puzzle, Mystery, and Magic; Maps of the Imagination: The Writer as Cartographer; Suburban Journals: The Sketchbooks, Drawings, and Prints of Charles Ritchie, in collaboration with the artist; a novel, The Girls Next Door; a collection of stories, Magician; and The Pirate Prince, co-written with Cape Cod treasure hunter Barry Clifford, about Clifford's discovery of the pirate ship Whydah. He has also co-edited, with Andrea Barrett, A Kite in the Wind: Fiction Writers on Their Craft, The Story Behind the Story: 26 Stories by Contemporary Writers and How They Work and, with Charles Baxter, Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life. He currently teaches at the University of Houston, and in Warren Wilson's MFA Program for Writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of "Craftwork," author Peter Turchi teaches a lesson on how to use shifting power dynamics to write more dynamic scenes in fiction. Turchi is the author of seven books and the co-editor of three anthologies. His books include (Don't) Stop Me if You've Heard This Before; A Muse and A Maze: Writing as Puzzle, Mystery, and Magic; Maps of the Imagination: The Writer as Cartographer; Suburban Journals: The Sketchbooks, Drawings, and Prints of Charles Ritchie, in collaboration with the artist; a novel, The Girls Next Door; a collection of stories, Magician; and The Pirate Prince, co-written with Cape Cod treasure hunter Barry Clifford, about Clifford's discovery of the pirate ship Whydah. His short story “Night, Truck, Two Lights Burning” has been published, with images by Charles Ritchie, in a limited edition artist's book. He has also co-edited, with Andrea Barrett, A Kite in the Wind: Fiction Writers on Their Craft, The Story Behind the Story: 26 Stories by Contemporary Writers and How They Work and, with Charles Baxter, Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life. Turchi's work has appeared in Tin House, Fiction Writers Review, Ploughshares, Story, The Alaska Quarterly Review, Puerto del Sol, and The Colorado Review, among other journals. His honors include fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, Washington College's Sophie Kerr Prize, an Illinois Arts Council Literary Award, North Carolina's Sir Walter Raleigh Award, and having a quotation from A Muse and a Maze serve as the answer to the New York Times Magazine Sunday acrostic. Born in Baltimore, he earned his BA at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland, and his MFA at the University of Arizona. He has taught at Northwestern University and Appalachian State University, and has been on the faculty of the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference. For 15 years he directed The MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina; at Arizona State University he taught fiction and served as Director of Creative Writing and Director of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing. He currently teaches at the University of Houston, and in Warren Wilson's MFA Program for Writers. Laura, his wife, is a Clinical Professor in English at Arizona State University, where she is curriculum director for “RaceB4Race: Sustaining, Building, Innovating” at the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies; she also co-directs the Shakespeare and Social Justice Project at the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles. Reed, their son, is a musician (www.reedturchi.com). *** Otherppl with Brad Listi is a weekly literary podcast featuring in-depth interviews with today's leading writers. Launched in 2011. Books. Literature. Writing. Publishing. Authors. Screenwriters. Etc. Available where podcasts are available: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeart Radio, etc. Subscribe to Brad Listi's email newsletter. Support the show on Patreon Merch @otherppl Instagram  YouTube TikTok Email the show: letters [at] otherppl [dot] com The podcast is a proud affiliate partner of Bookshop, working to support local, independent bookstores. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1886, the twenty-six-year-old Anton Chekhov was practicing medicine, supporting his family, falling in and out love, writing pieces for newspapers at a furious pace - and gradually becoming one of the greatest short story writers the world has ever seen. In this episode, Jacke talks to Bob Blaisdell, author of Chekhov Becomes Chekhov: The Emergence of a Literary Genius, about the two-year period in which Chekhov went from a virtual unknown to a promising literary star admired by Tolstoy himself. Bob Blaisdell is Professor of English at the City University of New York's Kingsborough College and the author of Creating Anna Karenina. He is a reviewer for the San Francisco Chronicle, the Los Angeles Review of Books, The Christian Science Monitor, and the editor of more than three dozen Dover literature and poetry collections, including a collection of Chekhov's love stores. He lives in New York City. Additional listening suggestions: 150 Chekhov's "The Lady with the Little Dog" "Gooseberries" by Anton Chekhov "Gusev" by Anton Chekhov 63 Chekhov, Bellow, Wright, and Fox (with Charles Baxter) 290 The Seagull by Anton Chekhov 292 Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov 294 Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov 295 The Past, The Future, and Chekhov 299 The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/shop. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at www.thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Novelist Tom Perrotta joins Fiction/Non/Fiction hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to discuss the upcoming midterm elections through the lens of his new novel, Tracy Flick Can't Win, his second about the title character. Tracy Flick serves as an avatar for elite liberalism—a way many view the Democratic Party, he argues, whether the Dems are aware of it or not. Perrotta talks about what it means for his character, and many Americans, to be Republicans at heart while finding it necessary to lean toward the Democratic Party in light of Trump-era Republicanism. He also reads from the novel and explains how #MeToo influenced his decision to return to the iconic heroine. To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/. This podcast is produced by Anne Kniggendorf. Selected Readings: Tom Perrotta Election Tracy Flick Can't Win Mrs. Fletcher The Leftovers Little Children Bad Haircut The Wishbones Joe College The Abstinence Teacher Nine Inches Others: "Rhyming Action," by Charles Baxter, from Michigan Quarterly Review, Vol. 35, No. 4 (also in Burning Down the House) 5 scenarios that could decide the Senate in 2022, The Washington Post On Feminism and Fictionalized Histories: Curtis Sittenfeld Tackles Centrism, Clintonism and All Things ‘Hillary Rodham' (Fiction/Non/Fiction Season 3, Episode 18)  Charles Baxter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis. His new craft book is Wonderlands. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For years, we've enjoyed talking to writers about the books they love best. In this "best of" episode, we go deep into the archive for three of our favorites: Jim Shepard and his youthful discovery of Bram Stoker's Dracula; Margot Livesey and her love for Ford Madox Ford's modernist classic The Good Soldier; and Charles Baxter telling us about his love for the poetry of James Wright. Enjoy! Additional listening suggestions: 96 Dracula, Lolita, and the Power of Volcanoes (with Jim Shepard) 63 Chekhov, Bellow, Wright (with Charles Baxter) 78 Jane Eyre, The Good Soldier, Giovanni's Room (with Margot Livesey) Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/shop. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at www.thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer and professor Charles Baxter joins Fiction/Non/Fiction hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to discuss his new essay collection Wonderlands: Essays on the Life of Literature, and how his thoughts on craft are linked to the times in which we live. He defines concepts he has used, including “wonderlands,” “Captain Happen,” “request moments,” and “toxic narratives,” and offers illustrations from literature and the world around us to show how these can inform the writing of fiction. For example, he explains, Donald Trump rejects his loss in the 2020 presidential election as a toxic narrative because it would change his understanding of who he is.  To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/. This podcast is produced by Anne Kniggendorf. Selected Readings: Charles Baxter Wonderlands Gryphon Burning Down the House There's Something I Want You to Do The Art of Subtext Behind Murakami's Mirror | The New York Review of Books Others: Is the World Really Falling Apart, or Does It Just Feel That Way? by Max Fisher - The New York Times S4 Episode 6: Hope on the Horizon: Charles Baxter and Mike Alberti on Despair and Renewal in Fiction S1 Episode 4: We're All Russian, Now World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll Haruki Murakami 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami Either/Or by Elif Batuman The Lighthouse The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë Dracula by Bram Stoker The Wicker Man Bennett Sims Lacy Johnson Get Out Mike Alberti Jamaica Kincaid The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien Stacey D'Erasmo Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Dog Day Afternoon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hablamos de emigración, desarraigo, xenofobia y maternidad con la escritora mexicana Brenda Navarro, que nos presenta su segunda novela, Ceniza en la boca (Ed. Sexto piso), una historia durísima que parte de un suicidio para plantear qué vidas merecen la pena ser vividas. Antes, leemos un fragmento de El festín del amor, la exitosa novela sobre el amor de Charles Baxter, que ha vuelto a las librerías en edición de Libros del Asteroide. En su sección, Ignacio Elguero nos recomienda un solo título, pero que vale por mil: Gabinete de curiosidades y maravillas, catálogo bibliográfico de la Editorial Polifemo sobre los asuntos más variados, desde libros de colecciones hasta volúmenes curiosos de antropología. Además, Javier Lostalé nos habla de El insomne (Ed. Cabaret Voltaire), novela en la que el reputado escritor marroquí Tahar Ben Jelloun nos muestra, con grandes dosis de humor, la peripecia de un guionista de cine que se ve obligado a matar para poder conciliar el sueño. Y para terminar, Mariano Peyrou nos propone 50 estados. 13 poetas contemporáneos de Estados Unidos (Ed. Kriller 71 y Fulgencio Pimentel), un libro con selección, prólogo y traducción de Ezequiel Zaidenwerg que puede entenderse de cuatro maneras: como una antología poética real, como una antología ficticia, como una novela o como recipiente de todas las preguntas que suscita en el lector. Escuchar audio

Nathan Jordan Poole speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Idlewild,” which appears in The Common's new spring issue. In this conversation, Nathan talks about doing seasonal work at Christmas tree farms, the workers from all walks of life he met there, and how those experiences and those people helped to inspire this story. He also discusses his writing and revision process, his story collections and future projects, and why he chooses to write unromantically about rural life. Nathan Jordan Poole is the author of two books of fiction: Father Brother Keeper, a collection of stories selected by Edith Pearlman for the Mary McCarthy Prize, and Pathkiller as the Holy Ghost, selected by Benjamin Percy as the winner of the Quarterly West Novella Contest. He is a recipient of the Narrative Prize, a Milton Fellowship at Seattle Pacific University, a Joan Beebe Fellowship at Warren Wilson College, a Tennessee Williams Scholarship at Sewanee School of Letters, and a North Carolina Artist Fellowship. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Blue Ridge, South Carolina. Read Nathan's story “Idlewild” in The Common at thecommononline.org/idlewild. In this conversation, Nathan recommends The Art of Subtext by Charles Baxter, available here from Graywolf Press. The Common is a print and online literary magazine publishing stories, essays, and poems that deepen our collective sense of place. On our podcast and in our pages, The Common features established and emerging writers from around the world. Read more and subscribe to the magazine at thecommononline.org, and follow us on Twitter @CommonMag. Emily Everett is managing editor of the magazine and host of the podcast. Her debut novel is forthcoming from Putnam Books. Her stories appear in the Kenyon Review, Electric Literature, Tin House Online, and Mississippi Review. She holds an MA in literature from Queen Mary University of London, and a BA from Smith College. Say hello on Twitter @Public_Emily. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Nathan Jordan Poole speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Idlewild,” which appears in The Common's new spring issue. In this conversation, Nathan talks about doing seasonal work at Christmas tree farms, the workers from all walks of life he met there, and how those experiences and those people helped to inspire this story. He also discusses his writing and revision process, his story collections and future projects, and why he chooses to write unromantically about rural life. Nathan Jordan Poole is the author of two books of fiction: Father Brother Keeper, a collection of stories selected by Edith Pearlman for the Mary McCarthy Prize, and Pathkiller as the Holy Ghost, selected by Benjamin Percy as the winner of the Quarterly West Novella Contest. He is a recipient of the Narrative Prize, a Milton Fellowship at Seattle Pacific University, a Joan Beebe Fellowship at Warren Wilson College, a Tennessee Williams Scholarship at Sewanee School of Letters, and a North Carolina Artist Fellowship. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Blue Ridge, South Carolina. Read Nathan's story “Idlewild” in The Common at thecommononline.org/idlewild. In this conversation, Nathan recommends The Art of Subtext by Charles Baxter, available here from Graywolf Press. The Common is a print and online literary magazine publishing stories, essays, and poems that deepen our collective sense of place. On our podcast and in our pages, The Common features established and emerging writers from around the world. Read more and subscribe to the magazine at thecommononline.org, and follow us on Twitter @CommonMag. Emily Everett is managing editor of the magazine and host of the podcast. Her debut novel is forthcoming from Putnam Books. Her stories appear in the Kenyon Review, Electric Literature, Tin House Online, and Mississippi Review. She holds an MA in literature from Queen Mary University of London, and a BA from Smith College. Say hello on Twitter @Public_Emily. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literary-studies

Nathan Jordan Poole speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Idlewild,” which appears in The Common's new spring issue. In this conversation, Nathan talks about doing seasonal work at Christmas tree farms, the workers from all walks of life he met there, and how those experiences and those people helped to inspire this story. He also discusses his writing and revision process, his story collections and future projects, and why he chooses to write unromantically about rural life. Nathan Jordan Poole is the author of two books of fiction: Father Brother Keeper, a collection of stories selected by Edith Pearlman for the Mary McCarthy Prize, and Pathkiller as the Holy Ghost, selected by Benjamin Percy as the winner of the Quarterly West Novella Contest. He is a recipient of the Narrative Prize, a Milton Fellowship at Seattle Pacific University, a Joan Beebe Fellowship at Warren Wilson College, a Tennessee Williams Scholarship at Sewanee School of Letters, and a North Carolina Artist Fellowship. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Blue Ridge, South Carolina. Read Nathan's story “Idlewild” in The Common at thecommononline.org/idlewild. In this conversation, Nathan recommends The Art of Subtext by Charles Baxter, available here from Graywolf Press. The Common is a print and online literary magazine publishing stories, essays, and poems that deepen our collective sense of place. On our podcast and in our pages, The Common features established and emerging writers from around the world. Read more and subscribe to the magazine at thecommononline.org, and follow us on Twitter @CommonMag. Emily Everett is managing editor of the magazine and host of the podcast. Her debut novel is forthcoming from Putnam Books. Her stories appear in the Kenyon Review, Electric Literature, Tin House Online, and Mississippi Review. She holds an MA in literature from Queen Mary University of London, and a BA from Smith College. Say hello on Twitter @Public_Emily. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literature

Nathan Jordan Poole speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Idlewild,” which appears in The Common's new spring issue. In this conversation, Nathan talks about doing seasonal work at Christmas tree farms, the workers from all walks of life he met there, and how those experiences and those people helped to inspire this story. He also discusses his writing and revision process, his story collections and future projects, and why he chooses to write unromantically about rural life. Nathan Jordan Poole is the author of two books of fiction: Father Brother Keeper, a collection of stories selected by Edith Pearlman for the Mary McCarthy Prize, and Pathkiller as the Holy Ghost, selected by Benjamin Percy as the winner of the Quarterly West Novella Contest. He is a recipient of the Narrative Prize, a Milton Fellowship at Seattle Pacific University, a Joan Beebe Fellowship at Warren Wilson College, a Tennessee Williams Scholarship at Sewanee School of Letters, and a North Carolina Artist Fellowship. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Blue Ridge, South Carolina. Read Nathan's story “Idlewild” in The Common at thecommononline.org/idlewild. In this conversation, Nathan recommends The Art of Subtext by Charles Baxter, available here from Graywolf Press. The Common is a print and online literary magazine publishing stories, essays, and poems that deepen our collective sense of place. On our podcast and in our pages, The Common features established and emerging writers from around the world. Read more and subscribe to the magazine at thecommononline.org, and follow us on Twitter @CommonMag. Emily Everett is managing editor of the magazine and host of the podcast. Her debut novel is forthcoming from Putnam Books. Her stories appear in the Kenyon Review, Electric Literature, Tin House Online, and Mississippi Review. She holds an MA in literature from Queen Mary University of London, and a BA from Smith College. Say hello on Twitter @Public_Emily. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

La columna de Gonzalo Heredia en Ahora Dicen para http://futurock.fm

SELECTED SHORTS host Meg Wolitzer presents three provocative works about rituals that reshape and define their characters. In “oh she gotta head fulla hair,” by Ntozake Shange, a woman's attention to her hair consumes her life. The reader is Tamara Tunie. In “Half a Day,” by Naguib Mahfouz, performed by Bruce Altman, time collapses and a lifetime goes by in a flash.  And in Charles Baxter's “Fenstad's Mother,” a mother and son rehearse old patterns and find new ones. The reader is Edie Falco. Join and give!: https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/symphonyspacenyc?code=Splashpage See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

¡No es un audiolibro! ¡¡Programa regrabado!! Manual para mujeres de la limpieza, de la escritora estadounidense Lucia Berlin, es una antología de relatos de una calidad notable que llegó a nosotros hace pocos años, mucho después de la muerte de su autora, de igual manera que se encuentra un mensaje en una botella. Ella es quizás uno de los ejemplos más notables de la cuentística norteamericana, una pionera del estilo, olvidada por muchos durante años y ahora venerada con razón. Sus relatos rompen con el espejismo del sueño americano para mostrarnos una serie de personajes femeninnos, aunque quizás sea solo una, inmersas en pequeñas tragedias cotidianas. La muerte, la soledad y el desarraigo son algunos de los grandes temas que atraviesan está compilación de relatos, considerada por el suplemento literario Babelia el mejor libro del año en 2016. Para hablar sobre esta antología, tenemos hoy una invitada de lujo. Eugenia Vázquez Nacarino (Barcelona, 1974) es el puente que ha permitido acercar al mundo hispanohablante a Lucia Berlin. Traductora de su obra, pero también de otros importantes autores como Henry James, Cynthia Ozick, Charles Baxter, Tim Parks, Shani Boianjiu, Alice Munro o Sylvia Plath, es una gran conocedora de la narrativa contemporánea y del complejísimo arte de la traducción. Prueba de ello es que en 2019 obtuvo el prestigioso Premio de Traducción Esther Benítez por su trabajo en Una noche en el paraíso, también de Lucia Berlin. ¡La revolución ha comenzado! Escucha el episodio completo en la app de iVoox, o descubre todo el catálogo de iVoox Originals

¡No es un audiolibro! Tras el desastre del anterior programa dedicado a Berlin, hemos decidido regrabar el episodio y ampliar contenidos. Aquí os dejamos un especial dedicado a Manual para mujeres de la limpieza. Manual para mujeres de la limpieza, de la escritora estadounidense Lucia Berlin, es una antología de relatos de una calidad notable que llegó a nosotros hace pocos años, mucho después de la muerte de su autora, de igual manera que se encuentra un mensaje en una botella. Ella es quizás uno de los ejemplos más notables de la cuentística norteamericana, una pionera del estilo, olvidada por muchos durante años y ahora venerada con razón. Sus relatos rompen con el espejismo del sueño americano para mostrarnos una serie de personajes femeninnos, aunque quizás sea solo una, inmersas en pequeñas tragedias cotidianas. La muerte, la soledad y el desarraigo son algunos de los grandes temas que atraviesan está compilación de relatos, considerada por el suplemento literario Babelia el mejor libro del año en 2016. Para hablar sobre esta antología, tenemos hoy dos invitadas de lujo. Vuelve a pasarse por el programa Eugenia Vázquez Nacarino (Barcelona, 1974), puente que ha permitido acercar al mundo hispanohablante a Lucia Berlin. Traductora de su obra, pero también de otros importantes autores como Henry James, Cynthia Ozick, Charles Baxter, Tim Parks, Shani Boianjiu, Alice Munro o Sylvia Plath, es una gran conocedora de la narrativa contemporánea y del complejísimo arte de la traducción. Prueba de ello es que en 2019 obtuvo el prestigioso Premio de Traducción Esther Benítez por su trabajo en Una noche en el paraíso, también de Lucia Berlin. Y también nos acompaña María Fasce, editora de la obra de Berlin en castellano y su "descubridora", por decirlo de alguna manera. ¡La revolución ha comenzado! Escucha el episodio completo en la app de iVoox, o descubre todo el catálogo de iVoox Originals

Acclaimed Slate books and culture columnist Laura Miller joins co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss the ins and outs of being a critic. Miller discusses a recent piece about diversity and representation in audiobook narration. She also talks about reading for pleasure versus work, and why, when she's not reviewing, she often finds herself listening to authors. To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video excerpts from our interviews at LitHub's Virtual Book Channel and Fiction/Non/Fiction's YouTube Channel, and don't miss our brand-new website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/ This podcast is produced by Andrea Tudhope. Selected readings: Laura Miller The Magician's Book: A Skeptic's Adventures in Narnia “The People Who Voice Audiobooks with Diverse Characters are Squirming Right Now,” Slate “Enough With Literature as Self-Improvement!” Salon.com “The Dark History Behind the Year's Bestselling Debut Novel,” Slate Others: “The Good Lieutenant by Whitney Terrell review – the Bush wars' best novel” by Charles Finch, The Guardian “Greetings From Polysyllabia” by Nandini Lal, Washington Post Wonderworks by Angus Fletcher Minders of Make-Believe: Idealists, Entrepreneurs, and the Shaping of AmericanChildren's Literature by Leonard Marcus “Toil and Trouble” by Caleb Crain, New York Times Book Review “The Hideous Unknown of H.P. Lovecraft” by Charles Baxter, The New York Review “Reply to Charles Baxter's ‘The Hideous Unknown of H. P. Lovecraft'” by S.T. Joshi “What Muriel Park Saw” by Parul Sehgal, The New Yorker “Philip Roth's Revenge Fantasy,” by Laura Marsh, New Republic Judith Shulevitz, New York Times Zadie Smith Dwight Garner, New York Times Daniel Mendelsohn, New York Review of Books Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric and Medaya talk with queer writer Kristen Arnett about her knew novel, With Teeth, which centers on the troubled relationships between Sammie, her wife Monica and their son, Samson.  As Samson grows up, it becomes clear that he isn't quite like the other children. He is emotionally aloof and prone o outbursts. As a teenager, he's even more of a mystery: a loner and a threat to the image of a normal family that Monica is so desperate to present to the world. As the stay at home Mom, and narrative focal point, Sammie is tasked with trying to understand both her mysterious son; and herself, as her marriage and seemingly every else begins to deteriorate around her - or so it seems. As With Teeth spins through its insightful portrayal of queer parenthood, the struggle for identity and autonomy amidst the disintegration of a marriage, Kristen Arnett keeps us guessing until the final moment when it appears that everything we think we know about Sammie, Monica, and Samson might be wrong. Also, Joan Silber, author of Secrets of Happiness, returns to recommend two recent novels: The Sun Collective by Charles Baxter; and The Boy in the Field by Margot Livesey.

Eric and Kate talk with queer writer Kristen Arnett about her knew novel, With Teeth, which centers on the troubled relationships between Sammie, her wife Monica and their son, Samson.  As Samson grows up, it becomes clear that he isn't quite like the other children. He is emotionally aloof and prone o outbursts. As a teenager, he's even more of a mystery: a loner and a threat to the image of a normal family that Monica is so desperate to present to the world. As the stay at home Mom, and narrative focal point, Sammie is tasked with trying to understand both her mysterious son; and herself, as her marriage and seemingly every else begins to deteriorate around her - or so it seems. As With Teeth spins through its insightful portrayal of queer parenthood, the struggle for identity and autonomy amidst the disintegration of a marriage, Kristen Arnett keeps us guessing until the final moment when it appears that everything we think we know about Sammie, Monica, and Samson might be wrong. Also, Joan Silber, author of Secrets of Happiness, returns to recommend two recent novels: The Sun Collective by Charles Baxter; and The Boy in the Field by Margot Livesey.

Joseph Harris and Kelly Fordon discuss the first book from Harris's thrilling interconnected narrative, You're in the Wrong Place. Charles Baxter stated that "Joseph Harris has a particular feeling for the Detroit suburbs and the slightly stunted lives of the young people there. . . . You're in the Wrong Place isn't uniformly downbeat—there are all sorts of rays of hope that gleam toward the end." The book, composed of twelve stories, begins in the fall of 2008 with the shuttering of Dynamic Fabricating—a fictional industrial shop located in the Detroit suburb of Ferndale. Over the next seven years, the shop's former employees—as well as their friends and families—struggle to find money, purpose, and levity in a landscape suddenly devoid of work, faith, and love. In "Would You Rather," a young couple brought together by Dynamic Fabricating shares a blissful weekend in Northern Michigan, unaware of the catastrophe that awaits them upon their return home. In "Acolytes," a devout Catholic clings to her faith as her brothers descend into cultish soccer violence. In "Memorial," an ex-Dynamic worker scrapes money together for a tribute to his best friend, lost to the war in Afghanistan. In "Was It Good for You?" a cam girl deconstructs materialism with her aging great aunt, a luxury sales associate, and an anxious, faceless client. And in the title story, simmering tensions come to a boil on a hot summer day for a hardscrabble landscaping crew, hired by the local bank to maintain the lawns of foreclosures. In turns elegiac and harrowing, You're in the Wrong Place blends lyric intensity with philosophical eroticism to create a singular, powerful vision of contemporary American life. Readers of contemporary fiction grounded in place need to take up this collection. The story "Jack" is available at www.kellyfordon.com. The book can be purchased at Wayne State University Press here or Bookshop here.

Author Joseph Harris joins us to talk about his recent collection of short stories, 'You're In The Wrong Place,' which takes place predominantly in Ferndale and was recently named a Michigan Notable Book for 2021.  In a thrilling interconnected narrative, You're in the Wrong Place presents characters reaching for transcendence from a place they cannot escape. Charles Baxter stated that "Joseph Harris has a particular feeling for the Detroit suburbs and the slightly stunted lives of the young people there. . . . You're in the Wrong Place isn't uniformly downbeat—there are all sorts of rays of hope that gleam toward the end." Stories by Joseph Harris have appeared in Midwest Review, Moon City Review, Great Lakes Review, The MacGuffin, Third Wednesday, Storm Cellar, and have received the Gesell, Tompkins, and Detroit Working Writers' Awards for fiction. He holds an MFA from the University of Minnesota, an MA from Wayne State University, and a BFA from Emerson College.

First Draft Episode #290: Loan Le Loan Le, editor at Simon & Schuster’s Atria Books and debut author of A Phở Love Story. Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode: Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life, edited by Charles Baxter and Peter Turchi Bringing Down the House: Essays on Fiction by Charles Baxter The Art of Subtext: Beyond Plot by Charles Baxter Jen Ung, Senior Editor at Simon PUlse and editor of A Phở Love Story

Nationally renowned writer Charles Baxter reads and discusses his just-released novel, The Sun Collective, which introduces us to compelling characters who struggle to make sense of a disorienting world and—against the backdrop of the Twin Cities—to form meaningful relationships and communities. U of M English professor and novelist Julie Schumacher moderates a reading and conversation with Baxter.

In this episode, we discuss “Gryphon” by Charles Baxter. How does a character telling a story as a memory color the way we read it? How do we write about children? How do we write for adults when we write about kids? What makes a story “Y.A.”? Should we include more kids in our stories […]

In this special live episode of Fiction/Non/Fiction, presented by Moon Palace Books in Minneapolis, acclaimed novelist and teacher Charles Baxter and his former student, short story writer Mike Alberti, join co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss their new books. Upon the release of his seventeenth book, the much-anticipated The Sun Collective, Baxter reflects on how time and place factor into his work and talks about writing about politics in his hometown. Then Alberti discusses his searing debut short story collection Some People Let You Down, and how he finds inspiration and hope in teaching incarcerated writers through the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop. The two also provide a rare window into their ongoing conversations about teaching and the craft of fiction, and answer questions from audience members and readers, including incarcerated writers.  To hear the full episode, subscribe to the Fiction/Non/Fiction podcast through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. And check out video excerpts from our interviews at LitHub's Virtual Book Channel and Fiction/Non/Fiction's YouTube Channel. This podcast is produced by Andrea Tudhope. Selected readings: Charles Baxter: The Sun Collective The Feast of Love First Light Saul and Patsy Shadow Play The Soul Thief Believers Gryphon Harmony of the World A Relative Stranger There's Something I Want You to Do Through the Safety Net Mike Alberti: “Summer People,” Colorado Review “Woods, Kansas,” Crazyhorse “Destiny,” Gulf Coast “Pestilence,” Indiana Review “Prairie Fire, 1899,” One Story Some People Let You Down   Others: Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop Dubliners, James Joyce Winesburg, Ohio, Sherwood Anderson Lost in the City, Edward P. Jones Wright Morris George Ault, American painter Annie, Broadway musical The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov Uncle Tom's Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand Cornel West Alice Munro ZZ Packer Denis Johnson   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The eerie realism of Charles Baxter reaches an apotheosis in his new novel, “The Sun Collective.”

Once a promising actor, Tim Brettigan has gone missing. His father thinks he may have seen him among some homeless people. And though she knows he left on purpose, his mother has been searching for him all over the city. She checks the usual places—churches, storefronts, benches—and stum­bles upon a local community group with lofty goals and an enigmatic leader who will alter all of their lives. Christina, a young woman rapidly becoming addicted to a boutique drug that gives her a feeling of blessedness, is inexplicably drawn to the same collective by a man who’s convinced he may start a revolution. As the lives of these four characters intertwine, a story of guilt, anxiety, and feverish hope unfolds in the city of Minneapolis. A vision of modern American society and the specters of the consumerism, fanaticism, and fear that haunt it, The Sun Collective captures both the mystery and the violence that punctuate our daily lives.

Editor Mari Kesselring and author Patrick Hueller share with me the story of how they met, each a set of identical twins with a love of literature, and how they work together now as writers, parents, and spouses. Mari tells me about her publisher, North Star Editions, and Patrick tells me about his newest book, READ AT YOUR OWN PERIL. We also talk author submissions, editorial styles, launching books in the time of COVID-19, reaching reluctant readers, how pantsers and plotters can apparently learn to love one another, and so much more. Mari Kesselring is an editor with experience working on many fiction and nonfiction books aimed at children and young adults. Some fiction books she’s edited have earned the following honors: YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, Junior Library Guild Selection, and ALA Rainbow List. She enjoys YA novels with compelling narratives and distinct, diverse voices. Mari is also the author of several books, including the middle-grade series, Bridget Gadget. Patrick Hueller has an MFA from the University of Minnesota. Through various pen names, he has written several YA and MG novels. Foul, a sports-horror story written under the name Paul Hoblin, was described by Booklist as “the strongest entry yet in the Night Fall collection” and “unbearably tense.” The Beast (also as Paul Hoblin) was a School Library Journal selection. Wolf High and The Wish (as P.W. Hueller) both made SLJ’s list of “Accessible Reads for Struggling Reluctant Readers.” As himself, Patrick is the author of the STU STORIES series, which, according to award-winning author Geoff Herbach "hits on pretty much every topic I cared about when I was a kid (love, Jedis, severed legs, etc.). National Book Award finalist Charles Baxter described KIRSTEN HOWARD'S BIGGEST FAN as "beautifully written, with a concert-hall perfect pitch for adolescent speech and idiom and ways of feeling."

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and has taught at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com · www.creativeprocess.info

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and has taught at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com · www.creativeprocess.info

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and has taught at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com · www.creativeprocess.info

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and has taught at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com · www.creativeprocess.info

Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), First Light, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, The Soul Thief, and The Sun Collective, and the story collections Believers, Gryphon, Harmony of the World, A Relative Stranger, There's Something I Want You to Do, and Through the Safety Net. His stories have been included in The Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and has taught at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com · www.creativeprocess.info

After all, addiction is just the last stage of consumerism. - Charles Baxter

UNLEASHED: Poems by Writers' Dogs. A whole show dedicated to UNLEASHED, featuring poems read by Jim & Karen Shepard, Honor Moore, Charles Baxter and Jill Ciment

Hey there word nerds! Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Constance Sayers talking about her debut novel, A Witch in Time, which is forthcoming in February. A finalist for Alternating Current’s 2016 Luminaire Award for Best Prose, her short stories have appeared in Souvenir and Amazing Graces: Yet Another Collection of Fiction by Washington Area Women as well as The Sky is a Free Country. Her short fiction has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. She received her master of arts in English from George Mason University and graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor of arts in writing from the University of Pittsburgh. She attended The Bread Loaf Writers Conference where she studied with Charles Baxter and Lauren Groff. Currently, she is a media executive at Atlantic Media (publisher of The Atlantic).  She lives in Maryland and is the co-founder of the Thoughtful Dog literary magazine.  In this episode Constance and I discuss: How a painting inspired A Witch in Time Blending together multiple storylines into a cohesive narrative Managing pacing with different storylines Balancing writing and researching Novel-writing lessons from writing short stories Plus, her #1 tip for writers. For more info and shownotes: www.diymfa.com/289

Jenny decided to do a bonus episode recommending some cozy holiday reading and finishing up the 2019 TBR Explode project. If you listen prior to December 14, you still have time to contribute your best book of 2019 to be included in the last episode of the year. Read more about it!Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 174: Cozy Holiday Reading and TBR Explode 4.Subscribe to the podcast via this link: FeedburnerOr subscribe via Apple Podcasts by clicking: SubscribeOr listen through TuneIn Or listen on Google Play Listen via StitcherListen through Spotify Cozy Holidays:We Met in December by Rosie Curtis25 Days 'Til Christmas by Poppy AlexanderLet it Snow by Nancy ThayerThe Christmas Spirits on Tradd Street by Karen WhiteRoyal Holiday by Jasmine GuilloryLittle Women by Louisa May AlcottMeg and Jo by Virginia KantraSnowflakes at Mistletoe Cottage by Katie GingerThe Snow Child by Eowyn IveyThe Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine ArdenThe City Baker’s Guide to Country Living by Louise MillerLouise Miller InstagramOne Day in December by Josie Silver2 A.M. at The Cat's Pajamas by Marie-Helene BertinoWinter by Karl Ove KnausgaardWinter by Ali SmithChristmas Days by Jeanette WintersonHome Made Christmas by Yvette van BovenFeast by Nigella LawsonNigella Christmas by Nigella LawsonA Castle in the Clouds by Kerstin Gier, Romy Fursland84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff TBR Explode 4Removed from TBR: The Girl in the Italian Bakery by Kenneth TingleIntruder in the Dust by William FaulknerSway by Ori BrafmanFiskadoro by Denis JohnsonThe Apocalypse Reader by Justin TaylorIf I Loved You, I Would Tell You This by Robin BlackAlthough of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself by David LipskyThree Ways to Capsize a Boat by Chris StewartEverything I Want to Do is Illegal by Joel SalatinAll You Can Eat by Joel BergTerra Madre by Carlo PetriniThe Taste for Civilization by Janet A. FlammangThe Dying Animal by Philip RothThe Kitchen and the Cook by Nicolas FreelingWent ahead and read:Await Your Reply by Dan ChaonThe Blue Castle by L.M. MontgomeryFirst Light by Charles BaxterMockingbird by Walter TevisMedium Raw by Anthony BourdainLeft on TBR:The Sound and the Fury by William FaulknerBrick Lane by Monica AliOblivion by David Foster WallaceBetween Meals by A.J. LieblingLa Bonne Table by Ludwig BemelmansThe Belly of Paris by Emile ZolaWhen Gravity Falls by George Alec EffingerRelated Episodes:Episode 123 - Godlets and Forests with Lauren WeinholdEpisode 141 - Profound and Tedious Work with Yanira Ramirez Episode 149 - TBR Explode!Episode 158 - TBR Explode 2Episode 168 - TBR Explode 3   Episode 172 - The It Book of NYC with Jon Laubinger Episode 173 - Expecting a Lot from a Book with Sarah Tittle Stalk me online:  Jenny at GoodreadsJenny on TwitterJenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy

Jenny welcomes Jon Laubinger of the Film Baby Film Podcast back to the Reading Envy Pub for a chat on books, the multimedia versions they connect to, and more. We spend some time chatting about recent book awards, including more on the Booker Prize and the Nobel Prize for Literature. If you're not that interested in award chatter, jump ahead to 15:15. And make sure to listen to the end for information on one Reading Envy guest who had a movie made from his work!Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 172: The It Book of NYC with Jon LaubingerSubscribe to the podcast via this link: FeedburnerOr subscribe via Apple Podcasts by clicking: SubscribeOr listen through TuneIn Or listen on Google Play Listen via StitcherListen through Spotify Books discussed: The Need by Helen PhillipThe Deep by Rivers Solomon, Daveed Diggs, William Hutson, and Jonathan SnipesSatantango by László Krasznahorkai, translated by George SzirtesFirst Light by Charles BaxterThe Devils of Loudon by Aldous HuxleyTales of the City by Armistead Maupin, read by Frances McDormandOther mentions:Booker Prize 2019The Testaments by Margaret AtwoodThe Handmaid's Tale by Margaret AtwoodQuichotte by Salman RushdieNobel Prize for LiteratureFlights by Olga Tocarczuk Wings of Desire (film)Kindred by Octavia ButlerZEAL & ARDOR"We Are in the Future" - This American Life 623Interview with Rivers Solomon Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi CoatesCitizen by Claudia RankineSatantango (film)Werckmeister Harmonies (film)The Turin Horse (film)Roadside Picnic by Boris and Arkady StrugatskyTinkers by Paul HardingBrave New World by Aldous HuxleyThe Doors of Perception by Aldous HuxleyThe Devils (film)Black Wave by Michelle TeaBeanpole (film)21 Truths About Love by Matthew DicksThe Poppy War by R.F. KuangThe Unwomanly Face of War by Svetlana Alexievich, translated by P&V Related Episodes:Episode 041 - Grotesque Beauty with Nathan Ballingrud Episode 080 - The Wild Things Helped with Jason Roland Episode 102 - The Reading Women Reading Envy Crossover Episode  Episode 106 - Falling Asleep During Tarkovsky Films with Jon Laubinger Episode 126 - Bernice Bobs her Hair with Jon LaubingerEpisode 165 - Delightful Reads with ClaireEpisode 166 - On Brand with KarenEpisode 167 - Book Pendulum with Reggie Episode 170 - Permission to Read with Joshua Greer   Stalk us online:Jon's podcast website, Film Baby FilmFBF on InstagramJon at Goodreads Jenny at GoodreadsJenny on TwitterJenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy

Chris Cander opens our all-female Season 3 of F***ing Shakespeare with a lovely conversation about witnessing magic in the every day, and how learning to really notice is the only rule she knows how to follow in crafting stories. We talk about adverbs and bull riding. And we discuss her publishing journey which sounds more like the world’s meanest conceived prank for a writer than something that actually ends happily. But happily it does, lending hope and the admonition to never give up to us all. Buy Cander’s beautiful, new book The Weight of a Piano here.Also, join us at Christ Church Cathedral, Jan 22 @ 7 PM for her incredible book launch event. More details here.If you’re sad (like I was) upon finishing The Weight of a Piano, pick up Cander’s previous novels Whisper Hollow and 11 Stories. They’re not to be missed.Suggested Reads & Honorable Mentions:Full context of Chris’ story about sitting on the plane next to someone reading her book here.Haruki Murakami’s Wind-Up Bird Chronicleanything by Charles Baxter or Annie ProulxRebecca Makkai’s The Great BelieversThree craft books you should have on your shelf: Stephen King’s On Writing, Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird, and Charles Baxter’s Burning Down the House: Essays on FictionFollow Cander on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.F***ing Shakespeare always appreciates you rating, reviewing, and subscribing to the show in your favorite podcaster. Helping to direct traffic to our podcast helps us to generate new content. And your reviews are tax-deductible*.*not really. Photo by Lauren Volness

When asked to name the three greatest novels ever written, William Faulkner replied, “Anna Karenina, Anna Karenina, Anna Karenina.” Nabokov said, “When you are reading Turgenev, you know you are reading Turgenev. When you read Tolstoy, you are reading because you just cannot stop.” And finally, there's this compliment from author Isaac Babel: “If the world could write itself," he said, "it would write like Tolstoy.” But who was Leo Tolstoy? How did he become the person who could write War and Peace and Anna Karenina, two of the pinnacles of the novel form - and two of the greatest achievements in the history of human civilization? Why did he stop writing novels, and what did he do with the rest of his life? In this episode, host Jacke Wilson takes a look at the life and works of Count Leo Tolstoy, one of the most fascinating and revered figures in all of literature. Links and Other Treats: More of a Chekhov person? You might like Episode 63, where author Charles Baxter talks about how important Chekhov has been to him. For a look at Anna Karenina's "French cousin," check out Episode 79 - Music That Melts the Stars - Madame Bovary. Love the Russians? Listen to more in Episode 130 on the great poet Anna Akhmatova and her surprising affair with sculptor Amedeo Modigliani. Why did Tolstoy hate Shakespeare? Learn more in Episode 104 - King Lear. Help support the show at patreon.com/literature. Find out more at historyofliterature.com, jackewilson.com, or by following Jacke and Mike on Twitter at @thejackewilson and @literatureSC. FREE GIFTS! The gift-giving continues! This month, we're giving away a copy of Nabokov's Lectures on Russian Literature and an Amazon.com gift certificate for the book of your choice. Sign up at patreon.com/literature to be eligible to win. Good luck! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why does literature matter? Why read at all? Jacke Wilson takes questions from high school students and attempts to make the case for literature. Works and authors discussed include Beloved, The Great Gatsby, Shakespeare, The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, Animal Farm, Scarlet Letter, Of Mice and Men, the Odyssey, The Inferno, The House on Mango Street, Farenheit 451, 1984, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Where the Red Fern Grows, Pride and Prejudice, Junot Diaz, Drown, Maya Angelou, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Ernest Hemingway, Willa Cather, J.K. Rowling, Paul Auster, Sara Gruen, Alice Sebold, Lorrie Moore, Sandra Cisneros, Gabriel Garcia-Marquez, Isabel Allende, Ernest Hemingway, Martin Amis, Colson Whitehead, Edwidge Danticat, Ronica Dhar, David Sedaris, Jhumpa Lahiri, Zadie Smith, Junot Diaz, Vu Tran, Julia Alvarez, Amy Tan, Gish Jen, Margot Livesey, Cristina Garcia, George Saunders, Jennifer Egan, Stephen King, Haruki Murakami, James McBride, Shawna Yang Ryan, Charles Baxter, Nick Hornby, Ngugi wa Thiong'o. Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/shop. Learn more about the show at historyofliterature.com or facebook.com/historyofliterature. Contact the host at jackewilsonauthor@gmail.com or @WriterJacke. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell discuss Russian-American political machinations with Ukrainian-born novelist Sana Krasikov and novelist Charles Baxter explores America's curious fascination with Chekhov and great Russian literature. For more, head to LitHub.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this special episode, the revered American author Charles Baxter joins Jacke to discuss some of his favorite books, including works by Anton Chekhov, Saul Bellow, James Wright, and Paula Fox.  “Charles Baxter’s stories have reminded me of how broad and deep and shining a story can be, and I am grateful.” — Alice Munro  CHARLES BAXTER is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), The Soul Thief, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, and First Light, and the story collections Gryphon, Believers, A Relative Stranger, Through the Safety Net, and Harmony of the World.  The stories “Bravery” and “Charity,” which appear in There’s Something I Want You to Do, were included in Best American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College.  Works Discussed:  Collected Poems by James Wright Herzog, Henderson the Rain King, and Humboldt’s Gift by Saul Bellow Desperate Characters and The Widow’s Children by Paula Fox Selected Stories by Anton Chekhov Show Notes: We have a special episode coming up – listener feedback! Contact the host at jackewilsonauthor@gmail.com or by leaving a voicemail at 1-361-4WILSON (1-361-494-5766). You can find more literary discussion at jackewilson.com and more episodes of the series at historyofliterature.com. Check out our Facebook page at facebook.com/historyofliterature. Music Credits: “Handel – Entrance to the Queen of Sheba” by Advent Chamber Orchestra (From the Free Music Archive / CC by SA). “Sweet Vermouth” by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everyone always talks about the greatest openings in the history of literature – I’m looking at you, Call me Ishmael – but what about endings? Aren’t those just as important? What are the different ways to end short stories and novels? Which endings work well and why? In this episode, Jacke and Mike take a look at great literary endings, with some assistance from David Lodge, Charles Baxter, Leo Tolstoy, James Joyce, Flannery O’Connor, Samuel Beckett, Iris Murdoch, Uncle Wiggily, The Third Man, Donald Barthelme, Alice Munro, Henry James, E.B. White, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Mary Shelley, David Foster Wallace, O. Henry, Ian McEwan, Thomas Mann, and Joseph Conrad.  Show Notes:  We have a special episode coming up – listener feedback! Contact the host at jackewilsonauthor@gmail.com or by leaving a voicemail at 1-361-4WILSON (1-361-494-5766).  You can find more literary discussion at jackewilson.com and more episodes of the series at historyofliterature.com. Check out our Facebook page at facebook.com/historyofliterature. Music Credits: “Handel – Entrance to the Queen of Sheba” by Advent Chamber Orchestra (From the Free Music Archive / CC by SA).   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writing is hard. Sometimes when writing fiction, the narrative's momentum sputters to a stop. Charles Baxter, a fiction writer and essayist, shares six quick and dirty plot devices to increase the sense of urgency and keep a story moving forward before talking about the narratives he returns to in his own work.

Charles Baxter is the author of five novels, five short story collections, three collections of poetry and two essay collections on fiction. His novel The Feast of Love was nominated for a National Book Award.  His most recent story collection is called There's Something I Want You to Do.  Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College.  www.charlesbaxter.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charles Baxter is the author of five novels, five short story collections, three collections of poetry and two essay collections on fiction. His novel The Feast of Love was nominated for a National Book Award. His most recent story collection is called There’s Something I Want You to Do. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com. More about First Draft at aspenpublicradio.org/programs/first-draft

Charles Baxter is the author of five novels, five short story collections, three collections of poetry and two essay collections on fiction. His novel The Feast of Love was nominated for a National Book Award. His most recent story collection is called There’s Something I Want You to Do. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. www.charlesbaxter.com. More about First Draft at aspenpublicradio.org/programs/first-draft

Charles Baxter takes us through the pleasure of discovering books for what might be called the "hidden bookshelf." 

Charles Baxter examines the elements of virtue and vice in his new collection of short stories.

There's Something I Want You To Do: Stories (Pantheon Books) From one of the great masters of the contemporary short story, here is an astonishing collection that showcases Charles Baxter'sunique ability to unveil the remarkable in the seemingly inconsequential moments of an eerie yet familiar life. Penetrating and prophetic, the ten inter-related stories in There's Something I Want You to Do are held together by a surreally intricate web of cause and effect--one that slowly ensnares both fictional bystanders and enraptured readers. Benny, an architect and hopeless romantic, is robbed on his daily walk along the Mississippi River, and the blow of a baseball bat to the back of his knee feels like a strike from God. A drug dealer named Black Bird reads "Othello" while waiting for customers in a bar. Elijah, a pediatrician and the father of two, is visited nightly by visions of Alfred Hitchcock. Meanwhile, a dog won't stop barking, a passenger on a transatlantic flight reads aloud from the book of Psalms during turbulence, and a scream carries itself through the early-morning Minneapolis air. As the collection progresses, we delve more deeply into the private lives of these characters, exploring their fears, fantasies, and obsessions. They appear and reappear, performing praiseworthy and loathsome acts in equal measure in response to the request--or demand--lodged in each story's center. The result is a portrait of human nature as seen from the tightrope that spans the distance between dreams and waking life--a portrait that could have arisen only from Baxter's singular vision. Readers will be stunned by his uncanny understanding of human attraction and left to puzzle over the meaning of virtue and the unpredictable and mysterious ways in which we behave. Praise for There's Something I Want You To Do “These accomplished stories of precarious marriages and family strife are so laced with paradox and the unexpected and so psychologically intricate, one turns them over and over in one's mind, seeking patterns and gleaning insights…. Rooted in Minneapolis, its industrial ruins so poetically rendered, these ravishing, funny, and compassionate stories redefine our perceptions of vice and virtue, delusion and reason, love and loss.” —Booklist, *starred review* “Bare storylines can't convey the quickly captivating simple narratives…or the revealing moments to which Baxter brings the reader…Similarly, Baxter, a published poet, at times pushes his fluid, controlled prose to headier altitudes, as in ‘high wispy cirrus clouds threatening the sky like promissory notes.' Nearly as organic as a novel, this is more intriguing, more fun in disclosing its connective tissues through tales that stand well on their own.” —Kirkus Reviews, *starred review*  “Five stories named for virtues and five for vices make up this collection from a master craftsman….Baxter's characters muddle through small but pivotal moments, not so much confrontations as crossroads between love and destruction, desire and death….The prose resonates with distinctive turns of phrase that capture human ambiguity and uncertainty: trouble waits patiently at home, irony is the new chastity, and a dying man lives in the house that pain designed for him.” —Publishers Weekly, *starred review* “Baxter's delightful stories will make readers hungry for more. Fortunately, there are more out there, and one hopes, more to come.” —Library Journal, *starred review* “Charles Baxter is nothing short of a national literary treasure. To read these stories—hilarious, tragic, surprising, and indelibly human—is to receive revelation at the hands of a master. Who but this writer has such intimate knowledge of our most shameful depths, and who else can illuminate them with such stunning aptness of word and thought? These ten linked stories, fraught with loneliness, ultimately reveal the unbreakable ties between us all.” —Julie Orringer, author of How to Breathe Under Water “With his latest collection, Charles Baxter has given us something altogether new in contemporary fiction: a series of moral tales that contain zero moralizing. At the center of each of these stories is a pivotal request—something I want you to do—and the ensuing narratives unfold with the nuanced complexity we've come to expect from Baxter, with a theological acumen few contemporary writers possess. Here is a cast of characters unparalleled since Sherwood Anderson's Book of Grotesques, with a modern-day Minneapolis as tangible and strange as his Winesburg, Ohio. A stunning and unique work from one of the living masters of the story form.” —Jamie Quatro, author of I Want to Show You More “Charles Baxter's stories proceed with steady grace, nimble humor, quiet authority, and thrilling ingeniousness. In this his latest collection, all is on display—as are his honoring of the mysteries of love and his dramatic explorations of American manners, mores, family, solitude, and art. He is a great writer.” —Lorrie Moore, author of Bark Charles Baxter is the author of the novels The Feast of Love (nominated for the National Book Award), The Soul Thief, Saul and Patsy, Shadow Play, and First Light, and the story collections Gryphon, Believers, A Relative Stranger, Through the Safety Net, andHarmony of the World.  The stories “Bravery” and “Charity,” which appear in There's Something I Want You to Do, were included inBest American Short Stories. Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota and in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College.

Charles Baxter on Living Writers 2008-03-12 - WCBN Public Affairs Programming - WCBN Staff

Charles Baxter on Living Writers 2008-03-12 - WCBN Public Affairs Programming - WCBN Staff