Waiting on Wednesday: Mrs. Nixon by Ann Beattie

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Welcome to Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, to highlight an upcoming release you cannot wait to read.

Mrs. Nixon: A Novelist Imagines a Life
It should come as no surprise to frequent readers that I'm a huge fan of fiction about real people. American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld is my all-time favorite novel, and earlier this year Monica Ali wowed me with her re-imagining of Princess Diana in Untold Story.

When I sat down Monday morning with my coffee to start this week's issue of The New Yorker (bless you, Kindle subscriptions!), I began with the excerpt from Ann Beattie's forthcoming book, Mrs. Nixon: A Novelist Imagines a Life. It's being described as not-quite fiction and not-quite non-fiction, and I am all parts excited for its publication!

The excerpt in The New Yorker was both wonderful and perplexing. Beattie's writing, which I've read sporadically over the years when her short stories have appeared in The New Yorker, is exquisite. I highlighted numerous pages in the short excerpt. If it were a stand-alone piece, however, I wouldn't quite know what to make of it. It lacked a clear beginning, and I'm eager to see which part of the book this excerpt came from and how it fits into the book as a whole. Regardless, I'm eagerly awaiting November 15, 2011 when Scribner will publish Mrs. Nixon: A Novelist Imagines a Life. Need something to tide you over? The New Yorker's Book Bench blog has a wonderful interview with Ann this week.

Pre-order Mrs. Nixon: A Novelist Imagines a Life by Ann Beattie from Amazon in hardcover or for the Kindle.

Now tell me, what are you waiting on this week?

As an affiliate, I receive a very, very small commission when you make a purchase through any of the above links. Thank you for helping to support my book habits that bring more content to this blog!

Comments

  1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaSeptember 14, 2011 at 6:56 AM

    This is the first I have heard of this one. Should be a good one I bet.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Laurel-Rain SnowSeptember 14, 2011 at 8:42 AM

    How exciting! Not only do I also love these kinds of books, but I have been a fan of Ann Beattie's work for years. Thanks for sharing. This one is now on my list!

    Here's MY WOW POST and
    MY WEBSITE

    ReplyDelete
  3. AndiSeptember 14, 2011 at 9:34 AM

    Well, now you've intrigued me. Thanks, enabler.

    ReplyDelete
  4. ZibileeSeptember 14, 2011 at 10:21 AM

    Oh, this does sound very interesting and a little strange, if I am honest. I think I will probably be checking this one out as well. Thanks for the heads up with this one!

    ReplyDelete
  5. JillSeptember 14, 2011 at 2:36 PM

    I hadn't heard of this, but I'm a fan of this type of fiction, too. Going on the list for sure!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Laurie CSeptember 17, 2011 at 8:51 PM

    I haven't read that issue yet, so this is news to me. I have read all of Ann Beattie's books and will definitely be on the lookout for this one.

    ReplyDelete

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