Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Eowyn Ivey

Eowyn Ivey's debut The Snow Child was a finalist for the Pulitzer and an international bestseller. Her new novel is To the Bright Edge of the World.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Ivey's reply:
I'm always juggling a half dozen books and audio books at one time, especially right after I finish writing and editing my own novels. It feels so good to be able to read other people's stories without the distraction of my own work! I just recently finished The Vegetarian by Han Kang and Multiple Choice by Alejandro Zambra. Though they are two very different novels, told in very different ways, I found them both strange and haunting.

One of the perks of being an author is that publishers send me advanced reader copies to consider endorsing. My favorite debut coming out soon is The Invisible Life of Ivan Isaenko by Scott Stambach. To quote my own blurb, it's a "grittier, Eastern European, more grown-up The Fault in Our Stars" and features one of the most compelling narrators I've ever come across.

As if I can't find enough to read on my own, my 17-year-old daughter is always recommending books to me. She had me read Mrs. Dalloway recently, a Virginia Woolf I hadn't gotten to. And I read Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere at her insistence. I so enjoyed it! Now I'm listening to his View from the Cheap Seats, recording done by the author. It's a bit of a drive from our house to town, but I look forward to it because I can listen to the next chapters. It's fascinating, both as a reader and a writer, to hear how his stories and career have evolved.

Next up are novels by two of my favorite authors -- Barkskins by Annie Proulx and LaRose by Louise Erdrich.
Visit Eowyn Ivey's website and blog.

Writers Read: Eowyn Ivey (February 2012).

--Marshal Zeringue