Paula Bomer's Blog, page 14

COME TO POWELL'S AND HEAR US READ! JANUARY 17TH!

7 Things I've Learned So Far

I wrote a piece for Guide to Literary Agents website. It's part of a series called "7 Things I've Learned So Far."

Come To Bookcourt and hear us read!

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 1stBOOKCOURT, 163 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 7PM(F Train to Bergen Street, or N,R, 2,3,4,5 to Borough Hall)PAULA BOMER – BABY & Other StoriesJESSICA ANYA BLAU – DRINKING CLOSER TO HOMESUSAN HENDERSON – UP FROM THE BLUE

New Pages Review of Baby

In her collection of short stories entitled Baby and Other Stories, Paula Bomer explores the dark underbelly of marriage and parenthood and fearlessly puts to paper horrific human desires. Anger plays out through violent (and sometimes sexual) acts and, even more dangerously, through toxic passive aggression. There is a stark contrast between what her characters say and what they think, and real communication takes a backseat to resentment and isolation. She raises questions that aren't easy to answer, as in the title story "Baby":

What did it mean, to know inescapably that you married the wrong person… It wasn't something that she even thought in solid sentence formation… And yet the knowledge was there inside of her, choking her lungs, and burning her stomach, furrowing her brow with concerns for the children, the houses. She'd married the wrong man.

She resists the temptation to fix her characters' problems, and instead allows them to drown in an ocean of unfulfilled needs and repeating behavioral patterns. While her written dialogue feels unnatural at times, Bomer's descriptions are vivid, and her writing, though sparse, is thoroughly engaging and strong. I would certainly recommend this collection to a friend, but with a gentle warning about its dark subject matter.

Booklist Review

Eight of these 10 stories were published in literary magazines or on online fiction sites. Bomer writes about men and women disillusioned by the comparison between their fantasies and the real-life choices that they make. Set in cities, vacation destinations, and college towns, these are stories of betrayal and ennui, of despair engendered by the traumas of daily life. Many of her hard-to-like characters are surrounded by equally unlikeable people. The deftness of character portrayal will ensure that readers continue to work through the stories despite the heaviness of their subjects. Stories such as "A Galloping Infection," in which a man refuses to interrupt his vacation to take his sick wife to the doctor, and "The Second Son," which vividly depicts details of the ends of two pregnancies, promise one ending while surprising with another. Other stories have open-ended conclusions, leaving threads unfinished and readers guessing. Buy this for fans of character-driven fiction, for lovers of Roth and Updike, and for flourishing short story collections. --Ellen Loughran

O Magazine Puts Me On Their List of "Titles to Pick Up Now".

Giancarlo DiTrapano Interviews me over at VICE

Oh man, this was a fun one, as Gian is a dear friend and also, a blast. Thanks so much Gian. (He's also the man behind Tyrant Books and The New York Tyrant, truly brilliant journal and press.)

Thanks, Ed Champion

I'm super honored to be on Ed Champion's list of "13 Most Underrated Books of 2010" over at The Millions.

Recommended Reading

I answer some questions at Ravi Mangla's excellent Recommended Reading site. Big thanks to Ravi for letting me participate.

Two Interviews

Amy Boaz interviews me at Publisher's Weekly and Meg Pokrass interviews me at Fictionaut.