I canāt say itās my favorite because itās viscerally disturbing to the point of being literally nauseating but itās well-researched, deftly written, and a perfect example of the experimental direction Joyce Carol Oates has taken with her work in recent years. I adore her she is a treasure and probably one of the best American authors to ever liveā¦
"One of the most common and saddest spectacles is that of a person of really fine sensibility and acute psychological perception trying to write fiction by these qualities alone. This type of writer will put down one intensely emotional or keenly perceptive sentence after the other, and the result will be complete dullness. The facts is that the materials of the fiction writer are the humblest. Fiction is about everything human and we are made out of dust, and if you scorn getting yourself dusty, then you shouldn't try to write fiction. It's not a grand enough job for you."
My dad teases me about how when I was a little kid, my favorite thing to do when I was on the landline phone with somebodyābe it a relative or one of my best friendsāwas to breathlessly describe the things that were in my bedroom so that they could have a mental picture of everything I loved and chose to surround myself with, and where I sat at that moment in time. Perfectly Imperfect reminds me of that so thanks for always listening and for sharing with me too š
