LA Review of Books

Kristen Arnett: With Teeth


Listen Later

Eric and Medaya talk with queer writer Kristen Arnett about her knew novel, With Teeth, which centers on the troubled relationships between Sammie, her wife Monica and their son, Samson.  As Samson grows up, it becomes clear that he isn't quite like the other children. He is emotionally aloof and prone o outbursts. As a teenager, he's even more of a mystery: a loner and a threat to the image of a normal family that Monica is so desperate to present to the world. As the stay at home Mom, and narrative focal point, Sammie is tasked with trying to understand both her mysterious son; and herself, as her marriage and seemingly every else begins to deteriorate around her - or so it seems. As With Teeth spins through its insightful portrayal of queer parenthood, the struggle for identity and autonomy amidst the disintegration of a marriage, Kristen Arnett keeps us guessing until the final moment when it appears that everything we think we know about Sammie, Monica, and Samson might be wrong.
Also, Joan Silber, author of Secrets of Happiness, returns to recommend two recent novels: The Sun Collective by Charles Baxter; and The Boy in the Field by Margot Livesey.
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

LA Review of BooksBy LA Review of Books

  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3

4.3

69 ratings


More shows like LA Review of Books

View all
The New Yorker: Fiction by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker: Fiction

3,356 Listeners

The Book Review by The New York Times

The Book Review

3,873 Listeners

Otherppl with Brad Listi by Brad Listi

Otherppl with Brad Listi

523 Listeners

Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry by David Naimon, Tin House Books

Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry

464 Listeners

The LRB Podcast by The London Review of Books

The LRB Podcast

292 Listeners

New Books in Critical Theory by Marshall Poe

New Books in Critical Theory

146 Listeners

The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker by The New Yorker

The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker

2,144 Listeners

London Review Bookshop Podcast by London Review Bookshop

London Review Bookshop Podcast

128 Listeners

The Shakespeare and Company Interview by Shakespeare and Company

The Shakespeare and Company Interview

92 Listeners

The TLS Podcast by The TLS

The TLS Podcast

185 Listeners

City Arts & Lectures by City Arts & Lectures

City Arts & Lectures

392 Listeners

Poured Over by Barnes & Noble

Poured Over

314 Listeners

Close Readings by London Review of Books

Close Readings

78 Listeners

Ordinary Unhappiness by Patrick & Abby

Ordinary Unhappiness

225 Listeners

Critics at Large | The New Yorker by The New Yorker

Critics at Large | The New Yorker

632 Listeners