In our morning reading: thoughts on John Wray’s new novel and Cat Power’s new album, a zine for an excellent cause, and more.
Sunday Stories: “Fear of the Unknown”
Fear of the Unknown
by Allan MacDonell
In the mornings, sometimes, she finds herself before sunrise between sleep and wakefulness in an undefended state where the old questions still pretend to apply.
Where is he? She is in the outer court at the Hollywood Bowl. The headliner’s start time has been called, and he has not called. She sits one of three people in a box for four. The open sky above with its far off starlight illuminates nothing beyond the mystery of the moon and that one open seat. How long have I been lying here? She is drowsy on a rocky Sardinia beach. Grainy pebbles mold to her protrusions. Her towel has had a chance to dry since her last swim. He’d said he was going into the water, only for a moment, just for a dip and he’d be back.
Weekend Bites: Brian Alan Ellis Interviewed, Deborah Eisenberg’s Recommendations, Overlooked Albums, Kelby Losack, and More
In our weekend reading: interviews with Brian Alan Ellis and Kelby Losack, book recommendations from Deborah Eisenberg, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Nicole Chung Nonfiction, Kristen Radtke on Loneliness, Samuel Jablon’s Art, Mark Lanegan, and More
In our afternoon reading: new writing by Nicole Chung, new music from Mark Lanegan, and more.
Three Excerpts from Kat Gardiner’s Collection “Little Wonder”
We’re pleased to present an excerpt from Kat Gardiner’s new collection Little Wonder today. Influenced by music and memories, the short stories in this collection center around Gardiner’s time in the town of Anacortes, Washington, and feature numerous appearances by notable musicians like Neko Case and Tiny Vipers. Gardiner’s distinct voice and sense of timing offer a unique perspective on the quotidian, the surreal, and the creative.
Morning Bites: Jamie Iredell Excerpted, Porochista Khakpour, Haruomi Hosono Revisited, Underground Magazines, and More
In our morning reading: an excerpt from Jamie Iredell’s new novel, a review of Porochista Khakpour’s memoir, and much more.
Afternoon Bites: Cristina Rivera Garza’s Latest, Maryse Meijer on Experimental Fiction, John Cage Revisited, and More
In our afternoon reading: Sarah McCarry on Cristina Rivera Garcia’s newly-translated novel, Alan Sparhawk on football, and much more.
On Oneiric Inspiration, Revision, and Family Stories: An Interview with Nicole Chung
Nicole Chung’s new memoir, All You Can Ever Know (Catapult) is the moving story of Chung’s childhood as a Korean American adoptee with white adoptive parents, her search for her birth parents, and what she learned once she found them. The knowledge that her search yielded was not at all what she had expected or imagined; some of it was hard to take. But if we are going to entrust anyone, Giver-style, with knowledge, I nominate Chung for trustee. The overwhelming impression that emerges from the book is a portrait of Chung as a thoughtful, conscientious, compassionate, and even-keeled person who considered the feelings of others at every step of her search and, of course, during the writing of the story.