First published 1991
Leonard Michaels moves between personal reflection and fictional narrative in this collection of six pieces. In "Journal" he records daily observations and thoughts. "My Father" examines his relationship with his parent through memory and understanding. "To Feel These Things" delves into emotional experience and perception. "Literary Talk" captures conversations and ideas about writing and books. "The Abandoned House" presents a physical space loaded with meaning and history. "Sylvia" focuses on a woman and her significance in the narrator's world. Michaels writes with precision about ordinary moments that reveal larger truths about human connection and loss. Each piece stands alone while contributing to a larger meditation on how we understand ourselves through others.
Genres: american-fiction, 20th-century, biography-memoir, academic
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
Period: 20th-century
162 pages · Hardcover · JONATHAN CAPE, LONDON