Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Catherine McKenzie

Catherine McKenzie was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. A graduate of McGill University and McGill Law School, McKenzie practices law in Montreal. Her novels Spin and Arranged are International Bestsellers. They, along with her third novel, Forgotten, will all be published in the US by William Morrow in 2012.

Recently I asked McKenzie what she was reading.  Her reply:
I’ve just finished reading The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides and The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta. I’m currently reading the Steve Jobs biography. Both of these novels are extremely well written. What struck me in The Marriage Plot was how Eugenides seems to be both poking fun at the traditional narrative in what is generally called “women’s fiction” while essentially following that very narrative. I also couldn’t help wondering, given all the recent debate on the issue, whether the book would have received the same amount of attention that is has – deservedly – received if it was written by a woman. I thought Perrotta explored a very interesting premise in The Leftovers – what would life be like for the survivors after a catastrophic worldwide event & brought a neat twist to it by taking this type of premise out of its usual sci-fi genre into general fiction. I’m also enjoying the Steve Jobs biography though I’m already convinced that though I love his products, the man himself would have driven me nuts.
Visit Catherine McKenzie's website.

The Page 69 Test: Spin.

--Marshal Zeringue