A page from a comic I’m making out of autobiographical stories but instead of using pictures of myself, I’m drawing from superheroes in comic books.
Not sure what I’m calling it yet.
Some Things You May Like If You Like This Blog
Me on James Salter at The Paris Review Daily. Me on studying with Annie Dillard, learning to use an e-reader, and the racial unconscious of the United States as seen in our superhero comics.
A a copy of my first novel at your favorite retailer of choice.
Edinburgh is in print from the good people at Picador. Here are some reactions to it:
…Alexander Chee’s Edinburgh, fucking incredible son of a bitch...
— Junot Diaz, over at Austinist
Alexander Chee is the best new novelist I’ve seen in some time. Edinburgh is moody, dramatic—and pure.
— Edmund White
Edinburgh has the force of a dream and the heft of a life. And Alexander Chee is a brilliant new writer.
— Annie Dillard
Haunting… complex… sophisticated. [Chee] says volumes with just a few incendiary words.
— The New York Times Book Review
A coming-of-age novel in the grand Romantic tradition, where passions run high, Cupid stalks Psyche, and love shares the dance floor with death . . . A lovely, nuanced, never predictable portrait of a creative soul in the throes of becoming.
— The Washington Post Book World
Chee is a gifted, poetic writer who takes big risks…This novel marks the debut of a major talent whose career will bear watching.
— Publishers Weekly
A striking debut…A complex story told with skill and intensity, but also filled with moments when agony and extraordinary beauty somehow coexist.
— Kirkus Reviews
A complex, sophisticated, elegant investigation of trauma and desire - like a white hot flame.— Joyce Hackett, in the Guardian UK
A second novel will be out soon, but not really soon, as it is still being edited. When it appears, it will be called "The Queen of the Night" and say "Houghton Mifflin Harcourt" on the spine, plus my name. Details will appear here and also on alexanderchee.net.
To be honest, I’ve been lurking around here for about a month now, but seeing as I’m about to partake in Moonrat’s discussion re: your book, I figure I should drop a comment.
Read your book earlier this month and thought it was truly fabulous, is all I wanted to say. I read it in pretty much one sitting. I loved the artistry and lyricism of it, not to mention the way you handled such an uncomfortable subject in such a nuanced and compelling way. I found myself tabbing passage after passage of your writing… it was just so fresh and honest yet beautiful. Can’t wait to read your upcoming!
Angelle: Thanks so much, and welcome to the site.
I worked very hard on that book, and am still always pleased to hear it is being read and discussed. And I’m very much looking forward to putting the Queen of the Night into the world next. Thanks again.