In which the author of the bestselling essay collection The Empathy Exams and I discuss Frozen, Taylor Swift, the limits of empathy, the problem of happiness, and why we listen to sad songs over and over, with critical attention given to the importance of acquiring your own “personal flurry.” The Sunday Rumpus Interview: Leslie Jamison
About two months ago I agreed to review Tanya Selvaratnam’s The Big Lie: Motherhood, Feminism, and the Reality of the Biological Clock for the Tribune‘s book supplement. And then, once I got into the book, oh boy did I regret it. Not because it was bad – the book actually has much to recommend it. … Continued
This is a (lightly) revised version of a piece presented February 20, 2014, as part of Day Job, a night of stories about work (and, it turned out, play) organized by artist Dmitry Samarov, in conjunction with his exhibit at LivingRoom Realty. When people ask me what I do, I often joke that I have … Continued
So, I’ve been reviewing books semiregularly for the Tribune for a few months now, and it’s nice to be back in a deadline-making, word-count-hitting groove. Thus far I’ve stuck mostly to the food beat, but with this latest I got to branch out into ecology — and I liked it. JB Mackinnon is a former … Continued
[I am neither an actor nor a playwright, and yet somehow I have wound up in a theater company full of actors and playwrights. I wrote and performed this for Theater Oobleck‘s 25th anniversary bash June 19, staged at Uptown’s beautiful National Pastime Theater as part of the Pivot Arts Festival.] I come before you … Continued
So, remember that Rumpus essay from September? In the long wake of the attention it generated, my friend Zoe Zolbrod and I sat down this month to talk about the perils of personal writing, privacy, publicity, and what happens when Terry Gross comes calling. Our questions, and some answers, went up April 21 at the … Continued
[I wrote and performed this for the Ray’s Tap Reading Series at Chicago’s Prop Thtr on March 16, 2013, and at Story Sessions at City Winery on May 21, 2014.] You know what this means right? The coaster over your drink? It’s a marker. Visual shorthand for: I’ve stepped out for a smoke. I’m taking … Continued
As I think I mentioned, Knocked Over is going to be republished next month in an anthology of writing about women’s reproductive rights forthrightly titled “Get Out of My Crotch.” Many thanks to editors Kim Wyatt and Sari Botton, who reached out to me at the very end of their publishing process with the request to … Continued
Things have been quiet here for a while, haven’t they? It was so peaceful! Ah well. I honestly thought that no one would read the internet over Labor Day weekend. I was wrong. Since The Rumpus published my essay Knocked Over: On Biology, Magical Thinking, and Choice, the response has been overwhelming. So I just want … Continued
I am over the moon about how this turned out. It just looks SO GREAT. Many many thanks to Sheila Sachs and Paul Dolan for being so very talented. So, yes, the book is on its way to a bookstore shelf near you; please, if you can, buy it from an indie, from the publisher, … Continued