by Philip Roth
First published 2001
At a writers' retreat in rural New England, a group of literary heavyweights convene to workshop their latest manuscripts. But as egos clash and ambitions flare, the collegial atmosphere gives way to cutthroat competition. Veteran author Nathan Zuckerman finds himself caught in the middle, forced to navigate the charged dynamics as alliances shift and loyalties are tested. In this incisive satire of the literary world, Roth masterfully dissects the vanities and insecurities that simmer beneath the surface of even the most celebrated writers.
Genres: satire, literary-fiction, american-fiction, 20th-century, 21st-century, academia
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, shifting-alliances
Setting: New England
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
160 pages · Paperback · Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group