Good Intentions, Political Fiction, and Ongoing Debates: Talking “Short Century” With David Burr Gerrard

David Burr Gerrard‘s debut novel, Short Century, is a politically resonant work, revisiting national debates on war and morality that are never too far removed. At the center of the novel is Arthur Hunt, a liberal journalist whose politics prompted him to support the Iraq War. From the novel’s first page, we know that Hunt has been killed, and we know that we’re reading a kind of memoir, written after something scandalous has come to light. Through this narrative, a host of […]

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Reading David Burr Gerrard on History, Politics, and His Debut Novel

 I graduated from college in May 2003 feeling very little trust in myself but a great deal of trust in American military power. My instincts had been to oppose the war that had, at least from the vantage point of the Columbia University lawn on which I sat in mortarboard and gown, been won. I had the ambition to be a writer, but I had neither confidence that I had anything worthwhile to say nor any compelling job prospects. David […]

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