Loved it. A couple of times I actually gasped as I realized where the short stories were going, and I laughed frequently, even though these are not “humor” stories. The best part was that while the surface stories were excellent, the author always took them one step further. For instance, there’s...
So apparently graduation speeches are being turned into small hardcover novels with cool design elements- I read "Make Good Art" by Neil Gaiman and Chip Kidd earlier this year, and JK Rowling is coming out with one soon. I have to say, I like it. This graduation speech is about taking time and ef...
Meh. Some of the stories were nice. One I just couldn't get through at all. I feel like overall, they're stories about people dealing with circumstances and realities that they're stuck in. Rather than being characters with ambitions and agency, they're people who act because they're supposed to,...
I love the profound message of this book. Anyone can read the hard copy or online in 15 minutes. I can't remember where I heard about it but when I did, it immediately caught my attention. Favorite quote:"Find our what makes you kinder, what opens you up and brings out the most loving, generous...
Okay, let's get this out of the way. There are two main obstacles in the way of a reader's enjoyment of Fox 8: 1st, The fact that it's written by George Saunders, an author I personally love but who seems to draw a particularly "love it or loathe it" response from readers I know. 2nd, the riting ...
(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)I had the pleasure of getting to talk with legendary author George Saunders for CCLaP's podcast last wee...
‘What a degraded cosmos.’We live in a world where cruelty towards others is becoming more and more accepted – how easy we rationalize our self-righteous anger against someone who cut us off, brought us an undercooked meal, said something stupid, etc., and even seen as funny. Saunders, like the gh...
The stories In Persuasion Nation are easily his best work yet. "The Red Bow,"about a town consumed by pet-killing hysteria, won a 2004 National Magazine Award and "Bohemians," the story of two supposed Eastern European widows trying to fit in in suburban USA, is included in The Best American Shor...
The breakout book from "the funniest writer in America"—not to mention an official Genius—a trade paperback original and his first nonfiction collection ever. George Saunders's first foray into nonfiction is composed of essays on literature, travel, and politics. At the core of this unique coll...
Then he checks for vitals, wearing protective gloves. Then he drags the cage across 209 and initiates burial by dumping the raccoons into the pit that’s our little corporate secret. After burial comes prayer, a personal touch that never fails to irritate Tim, our ruthless CEO. Before founding Hum...