The Novel Today (Fall)

Discuss major new work by today’s top writers, including emerging novelists, award-winners, and established favorites, all of whom are central to today's cultural conversation. We will investigate a variety of inventive narrative strategies, explore the psychology of numerous fascinating characters, and examine important topics within a context of changing times, changing lives and a changing world. We will discover a dark academic fantasy at Cambridge University; the United Kingdom in 2119 and 2014; three generations of New Yorkers and their degrees of separation; a father’s mysterious disappearance in Japan in late 20th century; a globetrotting epic featuring a pair of young Indians  and the many forces that shape their lives; secrets and surprises during a harsh winter deep in the English countryside: America’s Big Band era, an old school hardboiled  detective, plus Nazis, Soviet agents, British counterspies, outlaws, psychics and swing musicians; a young expat couple who have created the perfect  life for themselves in  21st century Berlin; love, art, beauty, and a medical crisis in Iowa City. Readings: R.F. Kuang, Katabasis; Garth Greenwell, Small Rain;  Ian McEwan, What We Can Know; Joan Silber, Mercy;  Susan Choi, Flashlight; Kiran Desai, The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny; Andrew Miller, The Land in Winter; Vincenzo Latronico, Perfection; Thomas Pynchon, Shadow Ticket. Students should read Perfection for the first class.
Continuing Education Units (CEU) : 0

You'll walk away with

• Increased cultural literacy, including intercultural knowledge and competence
• An understanding of current contemporary fiction, including its themes, meanings, and historical and cultural contexts

Ideal for

• The curious and creative
• Professionals who use critical thinking