LIBERATION DAY, by George Saunders (Bloomsbury, $32.99)
American writer and Man Booker Prize winner George Saunders' short fiction comes in two distinct but equally delicious flavours - realism and absurdism. His latest collection, Liberation Day, satisfies both palates, switching between the two genres over 231 pages and nine stories. He adopted this approach in his last collection, Tenth of December, published in 2013. That book was a finalist in the US National Book Awards, and won the inaugural Folio Prize. If it ain't broke, don't fix it seems to be the thinking here.
Liberation Day opens with the title novella, an absurdist offering. A cast of captive Speakers and Singers are pinioned to the walls and ceilings of the Untermeyer family home. Their brains are controlled by the family members to perform historical re-enactments - including the Battle of the Greasy Grass, or Little Bighorn - for visiting company. The narrator, Jeremy, falls for Mrs Untermeyer. What could go wrong? (Everything.)
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Denne historien er fra October 22, 2022-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
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First-world problem
Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.
Applying intelligence to AI
I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.
Nazism rears its head
Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.
Staying ahead of the game
Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?
Grasping the nettle
Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.
Hangry? Eat breakfast
People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.
Chemical reaction
Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.
Me and my guitar
Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.
Time is on my side
Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?
The kids are not alright
Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.
