Overview
One of Californiaās leading writers, winner of the Pulitzer Prize in fiction, presents her first nonfiction volume on writing since 2005ās best-selling Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Novel.
"Smiley gives educators, readers, and writers much to discuss. Highly recommended." āLibrary Journal, starred review
"Line for line, Smiley delivers such clear, vibrant, precise proseāhanded forth as calmly and equitably as an ice cream cone, even when sheās incensedāthat a reader feels smarter just taking it in."Ā āThe Boston Globe
Long acclaimed as one of Americaās preeminent novelists, Jane Smiley is also an unparalleled observer of the craft of writing. In The Questions That Matter Most this Pulitzer Prize-winning writer offers steady and penetrating essays on some of the aesthetic and cultural issues that mark any serious engagement with reading and writing. Beginning with a personal introduction tracing Smileyās migration from Iowa to California, the author reflects on her findings in the varied literature of the Golden State, whose writers have for decades litigated the Westās contested legacies of racism, class conflict, and sexual politics through their pens.
As she considers the ambiguity of character and the weight of history, her essays provide new entry points into literature, and we lucky readers can see how Smiley draws inspiration from across the literary spectrum to invigorate her own writing. With enthusiasm and meticulous attention, Smiley dives beneath surface-level interpretations to examine the works of Marguerite de Navarre, Charles Dickens, Anthony Trollope, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Louisa May Alcott, Mark Twain, Willa Cather, Franz Kafka, HalldĆ³r Laxness, and Jessica Mitford. Throughout, Smiley seeks to think harder and, in her words, with āmore clarity and nuanceā about the questions that matter most.
This book title, The Questions That Matter Most (Reading, Writing, and the Exercise of Freedom) - 9781597146050, ISBN: 9781597146050, by Jane Smiley, published by Heyday (June 6, 2023) is available in hardcover. Our minimum order quantity is 25 copies. All standard bulk book orders ship FREE in the continental USA and delivered in 4-10 business days.
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