In our morning reading: interviews with Emily Witt and Carvell Wallace, pondering synths, and more.
Books of the Month: February 2025
Hello, February. We’ve had a lot on our minds over here at Vol. 1 Brooklyn HQ, as is the case (we suspect) for many of you. It’s a complicated time, and our recommended books for the month reflect that. These books cover everything from the challenges of the creative life to a satirical look at society; perhaps one (or more) of them will give you a new vantage point on the world.
Restless Ghosts and Haunted Places: An Interview With Corey Farrenkopf
When I first encountered Corey Farrenkopf online, it was due in part to his literary profile — he’s a writer, an interviewer, and a librarian with a wide-ranging sense of the uncanny. This year brought with it the release of his deubt novel Living in Cemeteries, set in a world similar to our own with one key difference: restless spirits sometimes take revenge on the living for the sins of their ancestors. It’s a wonderfully disquieting book, and we discussed its origins, its evolution, and what’s next for him.
Morning Bites: Interviewing Talia Lavin, Booker Prize Winner, Vintage Crime Fiction, and More
In our morning reading: an interview with Talia Lavin, revisiting classic crime fiction, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Yasmin Williams’s New Album, Corey Farrenkopf Fiction, Jo Walton’s Recommendations, and More
In our afternoon reading: thoughts on Yasmin Williams’s new album, book recommendations from Jo Walton, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Corey Farrenkopf Fiction, Revisiting Kathy Acker, Kim Kelly on Labor, and More
In our afternoon reading: new writing by Corey Farrenkopf, an interview with Kim Kelly, and more.
Morning Bites: Diane Oliver’s Fiction, Secret Bookstores, Corey Farrenkopf on the Uncanny, and More
In our morning reading: thoughts on the short fiction of Diane Oliver, exploring a secret Brooklyn bookstore, and more.
Morning Bites: Valeria Luiselli on “Pedro Páramo,” Ocean Vuong Poetry, Interviewing Naomi Alderman, and More
In our morning reading: Valeria Luiselli on a classic novel, new writing by Ocean Vuong, and more.