Fiction 2009

Alice Sebold on literary prizes; Tim O’Brien on detail and imagination; original stories by Paul Theroux, Téa Obreht, Rick Bass, and others; new poetry by Linda Gregerson and Donald Hall; and much more.

Stories

The Laugh

“Neal had believed the myths about hyenas. Until he saw them kill.”
Interview: Obreht on how National Geographic shaped her writing career.

PS

A breakup letter to my therapist
Interview: McCorkle on happy endings and her irritation with Moby Dick.

Fish Story

“It was a swollen, gasping, netherworld creature. I had to keep it alive until they could kill it.”

Voices of Love

Tales of swingers, seductions, and extraordinary perversions

Furlough

“Colleen was coming home from Iraq. But Moira was like a surrogate mother now, almost a surrogate wife.”
Interview: Zentner on the new military family and the fine line between emotion and sentimentality.

Least Resistance

“Our first hug, between thermostats and oil filters, gave me a glimpse of where our friendship might lead.”
Interview: Harrison on his former life as a mechanic and his transformation into a writer.

Alba

“Último knew people claimed they’d seen the Virgin Mary. But this was Alba, an ordinary girl.”
Interview: Nelson on how the 1960s folk scene inspired him to write fiction.

Essays

Telling Tails

In fiction, details matter. But only imagination can illuminate the human soul.

Border Crossings

Does a national literature still have meaning in an age of open borders and polyglot cultures?

Eyes on the Prize

Literary awards are inherently subjective, but they are also the most powerful antidote we have to the decline of serious fiction.


Video

Miami: The Next Big Start-Up City?

How the city became a center for innovation

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A Brief History of Romantic Comedies

From The Atlantic's Chris Orr

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Life in 'the New Arctic'

A moving portrait of a fading landscape

Video

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The Rise of New York City

A fascinating look at Manhattan in the 1940s

Video

What Is Methane Hydrate?

"Flaming ice" is a vast natural energy source

Video

NASA's Time-Lapse of the Sun

Now with epic dubstep music

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Shaken Not Tuned: Cocktail Experiments

Can a tuning fork improve a cocktail?

Video

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Is He Cheating? A 1950s Guide

'That little blonde secretary from the office?’

Video

New Yorkers: Vintage Vacuum-Tube Amps

Risking electric shock to restore old amplifiers

Video

The DIY Piano-Bicycle

Everybody needs a hobby

Video

What Does It Take to Make Real Craft Gin?

Tour the Green Hat Gin distillery

Video

What Straights Can Learn From Same-Sex Couples

New insight from decades of research

Video

The End of the Mall Rat

A tribute to that pillar of teen culture

Video

The Wonderful World of Capitalism

An adorable 1950s cartoon

Video

New Yorkers: Miss New York USA

An unconventional beauty queen.

Writers

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