Turkish American novelist Elif Batuman on finding—and losing—yourself in fiction

Selin is back! The bright and curious heroine of Elif Batuman’s acclaimed debut novel, The Idiot, is now in her second year at Harvard, still hungry for experience. From awkward sexual encounters to depression to ongoing questions of how to live and to become a writer – in Batuman’s new novel, Either/Or, that quest leads Selin to some uncomfortable places, but also to self-discovery. Batuman's first book, The Possessed, traced her passion for all things Russian. Her novel, The Idiot, was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize, and the Women’s Prize for Fiction.