Longform

Episode 469: George Saunders

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George Saunders is the author of eleven books. His latest is A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life.

”I really have so much affection for being alive. I really enjoy it. And yet, I’m a little negative minded in a lot of ways too, like I really think things tend to be fucked up. ... To get that on the page—to sufficiently praise the loveliness of the world without being a sap, and also lacerate the world for being so goddamn mean—to do those in the same story would be a great aspiration. And I haven’t gotten there yet.”

Show notes:

  • georgesaundersbooks.com
  • Saunders on Longform
  • Saunders on the Longform Podcast (Jan 2014)
  • Saunders' Story Club newsletter
  • 16:00 "First Thohts on Reviision" (Story Club • Dec 2021)
  • 28:00 "The Great Divider" (GQ • Jan 2007)
  • 48:00 "Sea Oak" (New Yorker • Dec 1998)

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