A Story Told

August 23, 2009

A Story Told

I now have my very first mp3 player, and I tell you, it changes everything. I've amped up the time I spend listening to podcasts, including one of my favorites - Selected Shorts, a show (both on stage and on radio) out of WNYC that for twenty years has featured leading actors reading contemporary and classic short fiction. The live performances at Symphony Space are hosted by the indomitable Isaiah Sheffer and reach us non-New Yorkers via a wonderful hour-long audio program.

Anyway, last week I walked over to Comerica Park for a Detroit Tigers game, listening to "The Woman from Hamburg" by Hanna Krall, read by Hope Davis and, in this English version of the Polish original, translated by Madeline G. Levine. While Krall's work has been translated into fifteen different languages, while she has fascinating ideas and expertise on the intersection of journalism and reporting, I'd never heard of her. I'd never read a thing she wrote. This one was the first I'm acquainted with, and I loved it.

And so here I am, offering thanks to Selected Shorts, and to Hope Davis, for introducing me to Krall and her fiction. I can't wait to read (listen to?) more.

Posted at 11:13 PM in Literary Life | Permalink

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Isak

Isak is a space to celebrate tales and truth in the curious, joyful way embodied by the writer for which it is named. The name "Isak," after all, means "laughter," as she was fond of pointing out.

By tales, I mean fiction (especially short fiction), as well as other literary and artistic narratives. By truth, I mean the world in which we live. I especially have my eye on creative social justice.

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