by Jonathan Franzen | Oct 4, 2021 | Novel
The novelist discusses religion, the ethics of writing characters of a different race, and his deliberate evolution away from literary formalism and “po-mo hijinks.” Jonathan Franzen’s sixth novel, “Crossroads,” is set in 1971, and the title is firmly on the nose: the...
by Jonathan Franzen | Oct 4, 2021 | Novel
Jonathan Franzen’s Best Book Yet At last he’s put aside the pyrotechnics and gone all in on his great theme: the American family. “Jonathan franzen writes big books about small lives. This may sound like a curious characterization of a writer who has sweated to...
by Jonathan Franzen | Sep 27, 2021 | Novel
In “Crossroads,” bad decisions and bad faith weigh down the characters—and propel the novel to startling heights. A rabbi, a preacher, and a drug dealer walk into a Christmas party. This is not the setup to a joke; it is the setup to a pivotal scene in “Crossroads,”...
by Jonathan Franzen | Sep 27, 2021 | Novel
Jonathan Franzen’s ‘Crossroads,’ a Mellow, ’70s-Era Heartbreaker That Starts a Trilogy Jonathan Franzen’s new novel, “Crossroads,” is the first in a projected trilogy, which is reason to be wary. Good trilogies rarely announce themselves as such at the start. And the...
by WILL | Sep 26, 2021 | Novel
The pastor’s family at the heart of Franzen’s sixth novel – a bravura examination of the mores of liberal America in 1971 – are his most sympathetic creation to date The characters in Jonathan Franzen’s sixth novel exist in that much-disputed no man’s land between hip...
by WILL | Sep 25, 2021 | Novel
Jonathan Franzen: ‘I just write it like I see it and that gets me in trouble’ It is 11AM Pacific time and Jonathan Franzen has just turned on the light. “Special occasion,” he says drily of our video call. A sliver of sunshine dares to creep under the venetian blind...
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