Burned By Books

An interview with Clare Sestanovich, author of Objects of Desire (2021).Books Recommended in this episode:Clare Recommends: Alice Munroe, Runaway Denis Johnson, Jesus’ Son Keith Ridgeway, The Shock Shirley Hazzard, Collected Stories Yoon Choi, Skinship: Stories Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Dana Spiotta, author of Wayward (2021). Dana and I talk about how memory is stored in the architecture of cities, the unlikely villains of good novels, writing as a refuge, and the difficulty for women who step outside of expected roles.Books Recommended in this episode:Dana Recommends: Katie Kitamura, Intimacies Anthony Veasna So, Afterparties Mona Awad, All’s Well Joy Williams, Harrow Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Eleanor Henderson, author of Everything I Have is Yours (2021). Eleanor and I discuss the unforgivable failures of the American medical establishment, trying to find truth and care in-between the healers and quacks, deciding to open the closed book of a marriage to the world, and finding solace in the extraordinary memoirs of writers seeking mental and physical wellness.Books Recommended in this episode:Eleanor recommends: Maggie Nelson, The Argonauts Porochista Khakpour, Sick: A Memoir Esme WeiJun Wang, The Collected Schizophrenias CJ Hauser, Family of Origin Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Katie Kitamura, author of Intimacies (2021), longlisted for the National Book Award. Katie and I discuss the International Criminal Court, its biases and tireless fight for justice, the charisma of its translators, the attraction to violence in the novel, the inscrutability of marriages, and so much more.Books Recommended in this episode:Katie Kitamura, IntimaciesKatie recommends: Anna Seghers, Transit Adalbert Sifter, Rock Crystal Olga Tokarczuk, The Book of Jacob Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Brian Hall, author of The Stone Loves the World (2021). Brian and I talk about blending science and math into the narrative of his novels, coming from a family split between artists and scientists, writing the sequel to his cult favorite, The Saskiad (1996), and much more.Books Recommended in this episode:Brian recommends: Richard Powers, The Overstory V.S. Naipaul, A House for Mr. Biswas Toni Morrison, Beloved William Faulkner, The Sound and the Fury Helen DeWitt, The Last Samurai Min Jin Lee, Pachinko Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Hermione Hoby, author of Virtue (2021). Hermione and I discuss not needing her characters to be ethical, the mysteries of beautiful marriages, privilege and its trappings, and reading Adorno by the pool.Books Recommended in this episode: Theodor Adorno, an Introduction Willa Cather, My Antonia Sally Rooney, Beautiful World, Where are You James Baldwin, Giovanni’s Room Jesse McCarthy, Who Will Pay Reparations on My Soul? Mieko Kawakami, Heaven Clare Sestanovich, Objects of Desire Joshua Cohen, The Netanyahus Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rebecca Makkai, author of The Great Believers, discusses the impact of a plague novel in the age of COVID-19, her archival work into the Act Up protests in Chicago, and the pleasures and complications of stepping outside of what you know.

An interview with Jack Wang, author of We Two Alone (2021). Jack and I discuss his debut story collection, We Two Alone, which Viet Thanh Nguyen calls “utterly remarkable,” the as-of-yet unwritten Great Hockey Novel, AAPI hate, and the new global novel.Books Recommended in this episode:Jack Recommends: Nana Nkweti, Walking on Cowry Shells Gil Adamson, Ridgerunner Ling Ma, Severance Te-Ping Chen, Land of Big Numbers K-Ming Chang, Bestiary Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Rumaan Alam, author of Leave the World Behind (2020), a finalist for the National Book Award. Rumaan and I discuss how all fiction must now be climate fiction, being a promiscuous reader, the fallacy of writing from “your roots”, why there is no autofiction of black women’s experience, and the genius of J.M. Coetzee.Books Recommended in this episode:Rumaan’s novels: Rich and Pretty, That Kind of Mother, Leave the World BehindRumaan Alam Recommends: J.M. Coetzee, Disgrace David Gates, Jurnigan Anita Brookner, Visitors Michelle Houellebecq, Elementary Particles Don Delillo, Running Do Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with Miranda Popkey, author of Topics of Conversation (2020).Books Recommended in this episode:Miranda Popkey Recommends: David Burr Gerrard, The Epiphany Machine Alex Higley, Old Open Catie DiSabato, U UP? Rachel Kong, Goodbye Vitamin Framing Brittany Spears Tale of Princess Kaguya, Isao Takahata (Ghibili Films) Chris Holmes is Chair of Literatures in English and Associate Professor at Ithaca College. He writes criticism on contemporary global literatures. His book, Kazuo Ishiguro as World Literature, is under contract with Bloomsbury Publishing. He is the co-director of The New Voices Festival, a celebration of work in poetry, prose, and playwriting by up-and-coming young writers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices