Questions Without Answers with Sarah Manguso

Dear Friends,

What does it mean to write about illness in fragments? How can children’s questions reveal a kind of collective philosophy? On our 70th episode of Conversations, I speak with the writer Sarah Manguso, whose work moves effortlessly between memoir, aphorism, and essay.

I first encountered Sarah’s writing in Two Kinds of Decay, her account of living with CIDP, a rare neurological disease. The book, composed of crystalline fragments, became a formative text for me as a young doctor-in-training. In this conversation, Sarah reflects on that early work, shares how her perspective has changed with time, and introduces her latest book Questions Without Answers, a collaboration with illustrator Liana Fink.

Below you’ll find a few excerpts from our talk—on illness, writing, and the surprising wisdom of children’s voices.

Warmly,Emily and The Nocturnists

Favorite moments from this week’s episode

French Fries and Apheresis“You’re sitting there having the procedure, eating the french fries, and then you watch as the blood products actually get more greasy and fatty and filled with fat particles. They get cloudy and opaque. That always stayed with me.”

Writing the First Memoir“As a younger person, writing before the memoir boom, I was asked more than once, what is a young person like you doing writing her memoirs? You’ve barely lived. And I said, it’s just a memoir of this one experience. I was only remembering one thing. In retrospect, I look at the book and think, this is just blissfully uncomplicated and clear, because that’s how my life felt at the time.”

Children as Philosophy Machines“These little creatures are art machines. They’re philosophy machines. Almost supernatural, because they dwell in both worlds. My son’s mind was as interesting as the most interesting adults I knew, but with so little life experience that his questions were just bananas. When he asked, ‘When I was inside your body, did you know me? Did you want to meet me? Did I make the world?’ I thought: these are questions that deserve to be literature.”

The Mystery of Necks and Chins“There were so many questions about necks and chins. One reader suggested it’s because children are always looking up at adults, so they see our necks and chins more. Or maybe it’s because a chin has a name but no obvious function. Or maybe it’s just something in the zeitgeist. One of my favorites was simply: How important are necks?”

Stories of Resilience: An Evening of Live Storytelling

On October 8 & 9, the Center for Care Innovations is marking 25 years with their 2025 Safety Net Innovation Summit in Berkeley. The gathering kicks off with Wayfinders: An Evening of Live Storytelling on Resilience and Discovery — where health care workers from across the safety net will share journeys of uncertainty, renewal, and resilience, alongside live music, food, and community. Tickets are $99 for the storytelling evening, or $200 for the full two-day summit of workshops, panels, and conversations exploring how disruption can spark equity and connection.

Call for Stories: Trust in Medicine Series

We’re excited to announce our new podcast series, Trust in Medicine.This series explores how trust in healthcare is being built, broken, and reimagined in a rapidly changing world—where shifting guidelines, systemic inequities, and new digital voices all shape how patients and clinicians experience medicine today. Submit your story today.

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