Episode 22 — Darin Strauss




Other People with Brad Listi show

Summary: Darin Strauss is today's guest. He is the author of three novels—CHANG & ENG, THE REAL MCCOY, and MORE THAN IT HURTS YOU. And his most recent book is a memoir called HALF A LIFE (McSweeney's) which won the National Book Critics Circle Award. The New York Times Book Review calls it "...elegant, painful, [and] stunningly honest." And Elizabeth Gilbert, author of EAT, PRAY, LOVE, says "[HALF A LIFE] is a searingly self-disciplined work of literature, and of self-examination...the impact is staggering and unforgettable." Plenty to talk about here. Topics of conversation include: short books, Courier New, guilt, PTSD, the performative aspects of grief, auto-responders, subconscious motives, Dave Eggers, writing slowly, conjoined twins, Philip Roth, emoticons, David Lipsky, gestation periods, and the difference between history and memoir.