I Have A Braided Essay in The Kenyon Review (omg)
A review of Ella Baxter's "Woo Woo"
Hello! Briefly interrupting my critically acclaimed Google Doc interview series to announce that I am in the Winter Issue of The Kenyon Review.
I wrote a braided review of Ella Baxter’s artist stalker novel Woo Woo (which I enjoyed and found triggering… read to find out!). I interspersed my analysis with my own experience trying and failing to write about my former landlady’s Jungian Hollywood art practice and confronting my own dreams of childhood stardom.
The essay is free if you give them your email. You can also purchase a copy of the Winter Issue and I PROMISE that I will sign it wherever, whenever (Akbar or Singers or the luxury health store mentioned in the essay or idk my Reconstructionist synagogue I sometimes go to).
This is the most personal thing I have ever published.
My approach was:
I am very grateful for the team for letting me experiment and do something a little funky. There is also a lot of discourse about the decline of book reviews, so I’m humbled to have the chance to really delve into a novel in a long format.
Anyways, I hope you enjoy the essay!
In the spirit of my Google Docs project and my essay’s theme of projection/delusion, I have created a public Google Doc where you can share your thoughts. I guess review my review. Or share how my review triggers memories or feelings or emotions…. anyways…
Speaking of personal essays, if you haven’t yet… check out my recent podcast conversation with the one and only Emily Gould!
Alright, more soon! Maybe an excerpt from this spy novel I keep talking about…
^^^Updated headshot. Brent Lawson styled me and took my pic here. Idk who styled me in the original one.