Living Outside the Narrative in Elif Batuman’s The Idiot
The Idiot dramatizes the alienation, and even heartbreak, of losing the narrative thread of your existence.
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Sean Carman
15 posts
The Rumpus Review of Multiple Choice by Alejandro Zambra
But the problem of making fiction is just one of the many problems a reborn country must figure out.
Get in Trouble by Kelly Link
Sean Carman reviews Get in Trouble by Kelly Link today in Rumpus Books.
The Rumpus Interview with Bill Cotter
Writer Bill Cotter talks about his new novel, the joy of discovering writing a bit later in life, and the dangers of accidental self-plagiarism.
The Rumpus Interview with Kevin Barry
Irish writer Kevin Barry sits down for a chat about life in County Sligo, not knowing what your stories are about until years after you've written them, and the summer he spent in a camping trailer on a West Cork beach.
The Rumpus Interview with Laura van den Berg
Writer Laura van den Berg talks about her newest collection, The Isle of Youth, being drawn to locations "with a potential for magic and strangeness," and how to create a continuous dream for the reader.
Voices From The Government Shutdown
What do you do if you live in Washington, D.C. in the midst of a federal government shutdown that leaves 800,000 people out of work and affects millions of others?…
The Rumpus Interview with John Brandon
My favorite thing about John Brandon’s writing are his sentences. They take weird left turns and are compelling for reasons you can’t quite name.
The Rumpus Interview with Elliott Holt
Writer and Rumpus contributor Elliott Holt sits down to discuss her debut novel, You Are One of Them, her preoccupation with secrets, and working in 1990s Moscow during Russia's economic transition.
The Rumpus Interview with Ben Greenman
Humor and experimental fiction—charting the meaning of charts, playing with ideas like a slippage between the gears of perception and reality—have been Ben Greenman’s stock in trade.
The Rumpus Interview with David Shields
Essayist and lauded thinker David Shields talks about his new book, whether it’s necessary to draw sharp distinctions between literary forms, and his celebration of literature that collapses the distance between the artist’s life and work.
The Rumpus Interview with Craig Nova
Powerhouse novelist Craig Nova discusses his newest work, the terrors of the universe, the solaces of fiction, and his influences, from Albert Camus to Alice Munro.