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Bookseller Catherine Weller has a literary crush on novelist Jonathan Lethem, and yet she's generous enough to invite other Utah readers to the party.
Lethem has been a leading light in American letters since the 1999 publication of "Motherless Brooklyn," his unexpected detective novel that won the National Book Critics Circle Award. He's noted for literary genre-bending, as well his mix of "sharp social and political commentary with both quiet heartbreak and scathing humor," noted Dan Sheehan in a recent author's Q&A published on Lit Hub.
Weller Book Works is hosting Lethem's Salt Lake City visit promoting his latest novel, "A Gambler's Anatomy," about an international backgammon hustler. RadioWest's Doug Fabrizio will lead a conversation with Lethem, part of the monthlong Utah Humanities Book Festival.
"I like him because he's so smart," Weller says of her literary crush, referring to Lethem's nine novels, which also include "The Fortress of Solitude."
"It shows up in his scenery, in the way he puts together a scene, the way he puts together his characters. But more than that, I really love his essays and cultural criticism," she said, referring to his collection "The Ecstasy of Influence."
What's significant about the "Ecstasy" collection is the lively way he synthesizes music, pop culture and politics, Weller says. "He's addressing the larger literary milieu of the 20th century and the early 21st century."
When • Thursday, 7 p.m.
Where • Salt Lake Masonic Temple, 650 E. South Temple
Tickets • $7 at the door or at Weller Book Works; free with purchase of the novel ($27.95)
Ellen Fagg Weist Bookseller Catherine Weller has a literary crush on novelist Jonathan Lethem, and yet she's generous enough to invite other Utah readers to the party.
Lethem has been a leading light in American letters since the 1999 publication of "Motherless Brooklyn," his unexpected detective novel that won the National Book Critics Circle Award. He's noted for literary genre-bending, as well his mix of "sharp social and political commentary with both quiet heartbreak and scathing humor," noted Dan Sheehan in a recent author's Q&A published on Lit Hub.
Weller Book Works is hosting Lethem's Salt Lake City visit promoting his latest novel, "A Gambler's Anatomy," about an international backgammon hustler. RadioWest's Doug Fabrizio will lead a conversation with Lethem, part of the monthlong Utah Humanities Book Festival.
"I like him because he's so smart," Weller says of her literary crush, referring to Lethem's nine novels, which also include "The Fortress of Solitude."
"It shows up in his scenery, in the way he puts together a scene, the way he puts together his characters. But more than that, I really love his essays and cultural criticism," she said, referring to his collection "The Ecstasy of Influence."
What's significant about the "Ecstasy" collection is the lively way he synthesizes music, pop culture and politics, Weller says. "He's addressing the larger literary milieu of the 20th century and the early 21st century."
When • Thursday, Oct. 27, 7 p.m.
Where • Salt Lake Masonic Temple, 650 E. South Temple
Tickets • $7 at the door or at Weller Book Works; free with purchase of the novel ($27.95)