In our morning reading: thoughts on Hal Hartley’s films, an interview with Lucy Knisley, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Revisiting Gavin Lambert, Asale Angel-Ajani on Writing, Hélène Cixous’s Nonfiction, and More
In our afternoon reading: revisiting Gavin Lambert’s fiction, books with remixes, and more.
An Unconventional Writer’s Unconventional Memoir: Cris Mazza on “It’s No Puzzle”
The writer Cris Mazza and her siblings were blessed with remarkable parents. Her father, a World War II veteran who became a community college physics professor, was a forward-thinking man for his era, ensuring his girls had access to the same educational opportunities as boys. Her mother was not only college-educated, also unusual for her generation, but later returned for a second round of schooling so she could obtain a teaching credential and start a second career in elementary education. Together, the Mazzas made their children the center of their lives; they were rewarded by seeing their clan grow into vibrant, self-sufficient adults. Mazza chronicled these good times in Indigenous: Growing Up Californian, a critically acclaimed introduction into the “normality beneath the California myth that seems all the more dazzling and exotic with the passage of time,” as the Los Angeles Times said. While that book was fueled by memory, her new memoir, It’s No Puzzle: a memoir in artifact (Spuyten Duyvil Books), is powered by the questions that emerged as Mazza considered the objects that would amount to her parents’ legacy.
Morning Bites: Idra Novey on Writing, Rachel Eve Moulton’s Next Book, Ethan Chatagnier’s Latest, and More
In our morning reading: an interview with Idra Novey, a report on the challenges facing libraries, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Lonnie Holley’s Latest, International Booker Longlist, Charles Bramesco Talks Film, and More
In our afternoon reading: thoughts on Lonnie Holley’s new album, Charles Bramesco talks film, and more.
Morning Bites: Juan Martinez and Eden Robins, Republic of Consciousness Prize Shortlist, The Tubs’ Album, and More
In our morning reading: Juan Martinez and Eden Robins in conversation, thoughts on The Tubs’ new album, and more.
Sunday Stories: “Baby’s House of Missed Connections”
Baby’s House of Missed Connections
by Morgan Victoria
J is convinced I’m making a big deal out of nothing, but when I start bleeding out on the Williamsburg sidewalk, she shapes up a bit.
Oh god, she stops midstep, do you need to do something about that?
I elevate my foot and cradle the soft arc of my sandal in my hand. Years of yoga seem to be on my side at this moment. It’s fine, I reassure, despite being the one whose sandal has become slippery and leaving brushstrokes of red behind me. I just need to apply pressure.
J sighs, you can’t go into Baby’s like that.
Suburban Disquiet, Dallas Style: An Excerpt From Abigail Stewart’s “Foundations”
We’re pleased to present an excerpt from Abigail Stewart’s new novel Foundations, out now on Whisk(e)y Tit. Stewart’s book chronicles the lives of three different women with little in common except for the Dallas house where each of them live at various points in their lives. The result is a taut, empathic tale of restless lives and fraught dynamics.