L☀RNA S☁RE

I can’t wait to begin Sam Lipsyte’s new novel The Ask – which is reviewed by Lydia Milliet in this Sunday’s NYT: “These are the kind of unlikable, lovable protagonists we miss; these are the self-loathing, mediocre secret geniuses who can set our people free.”

Gigantic Issue 2 looks established. I bought it at St. Mark’s last night but have not yet read one word. The paper is shiny, feels authoritative. I also bought Dorothea Lasky’s book Black Life, and another Wave book, Bluets, by Maggie Nelson. I had never heard of Nelson until we read her in Sarah Manguso’s class. We read an excerpt from the beggining of Bluets and I had a really intense reaction. I was dismissive and judgmental, but as I kept reading, which I wouldn’t have done if not for the class assignment, I felt disturbed. I felt like the project had a lot to teach me about “talky” writing (I feel this way about Dottie’s work, too) and I became very, very protective of Nelson’s book during our class discussion. It makes no sense to me. How can it be so provocative and so difficult when it has perhaps the most yuck premise I have ever encountered (she falls in love with the color blue). I also got a lovely hardback from Four Corners Books called:

It’s part of their “Familiars” series in which artists choose and illustrate a novel or short stories. It’s an exciting time for reading and writing. Lots of friends are getting published! Spring is coming! And, I’ve got some nonfiction pieces coming out in The Rumpus (on Joseph O’Neill) and The Faster Times (reviewing a book about the Yugo) in the next fews days, and this weekend I am going to make Barry Hannah’s 3 Bean Soup.