On Tantrum Literature
In Mark Haber’s new book, we encounter the tantrum novel in metafictional extremis—a hysterical literalization of the form’s essential nature.
Literary Criticism
"Writing only leads to more writing." — Colette
The Consensus Sublime
Canon formation is not criticism.
An Epic of Displacement
Boris Dralyuk’s latest work of translation is Alexander Voloshin’s poetic epic about a Ukrainian exile lost in Hollywood.
Trauma Is a Narrative Problem
In Emily LaBarge’s new memoir, trauma’s intensity and unknowable nature impel her to try to communicate it.
Letter to the Editor in Response to the ‘New Qweird’
The editors of the anthology ‘New Queer Weird’ provide a critique of the other label, recently outlined by LARB contributors.
Get Rid of the Question Marks
Deborah Levy’s latest novel offers potent musings on Gertrude Stein, modernism, and feminism.
Man out of Time
The travels and ecstasies of a Russian aesthete.
Story Is Haunting
Ali Smith’s new novel is less a story than a meditation on story.
The Epic of the Fear of Death
Simon Armitage’s new verse translation of the ‘Epic of Gilgamesh’ is unhurried and resplendent, archaizing without being antiquated.
The Power of Fit
Laura B. McGrath’s new book looks at how the largely invisible work of literary agents shapes American literature.
Don’t Get Too Cozy
What we lose when the weird gets cute.
The Bittersweet Temporality of Love
On the 50th anniversary of his death, it’s a perfect time to unearth the forgotten fantasies of Thomas Burnett Swann.
