This week on The Write Question host Lauren Korn is in conversation with novelist Julia Phillips, author of Bear (Hogarth Press), her second novel centering sisterhood and the mysteries of the animals that live among and within us—this time on an island off the coast of Washington.
Sam and Elena dream of another life. On the island off the coast of Washington where they were born and raised, they and their mother struggle to survive. Sam works on the ferry that delivers wealthy mainlanders to their vacation homes while Elena bartends at the local golf club, but even together they can't earn enough to get by, stirring their frustration about the limits that shape their existence. Then one night on the boat, Sam spots a bear swimming the dark waters of the channel. Where is it going? What does it want? When the bear turns up by their home, Sam, terrified, is more convinced than ever that it’s time to leave the island. But Elena responds differently to the massive beast. Enchanted by its presence, she throws into doubt the desire to escape and puts their long-held dream in danger.
About Julia:
Julia Phillips is the author of the bestselling novels Bear and Disappearing Earth, which was a finalist for the National Book Award and one of The New York Times Book Review’s 10 Best Books of the Year. A 2024 Guggenheim fellow, she lives with her family in Brooklyn. Julia’s work has been translated into twenty-six languages. She has written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, and The Paris Review and teaches at the Randolph College MFA program. She is also on the board of the Crime Victims Treatment Center, a non-profit that helps people heal from violence.
This conversation has been edited for time.
Julia Phillips recommends:
The Stone Home by Crystal Hana Kim (William Morrow & Company)
Wait by Gabriella Burnham (One World; Penguin Random House)
Green Frog by Gina Chung (Vintage Books)
River East, River West by Aube Rey Lescure (William Morrow & Company)
Housemates by Emma Copley Eisenberg (Hogarth Press)
City of Laughter by Temim Fruchter (Grove Press)
The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan (Simon & Schuster; Marysue Rucci Books)
Broughtupsy by Christina Cooke (Catapult Books)
Fruit of the Dead by Rachel Lyon (Scribner Book Company)
Memory Piece by Lisa Ko (Riverhead Books)
Lauren Korn recommends:
Bear (Hogarth Press) and Disappearing Earth (Vintage Books) by Julia Phillips; also, this opinion piece in The Los Angeles Times
Mrs. Caliban by Rachel Ingalls (New Directions)
The fiction of Helen Oyeyemi, esp. Mr. Fox, Boy Snow Bird, and What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours (Riverhead Books)
The writing of Karen Russell, esp. Swamplandia!, Vampires in the Lemon Grove, and St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves (Vintage Books)
Happily by Sabrina Orah Mark (Penguin Random House)
outtakes/ glove box by Maya Jewell Zeller (New American Press)
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The Write Question team for this episode was Lauren Korn, host, co-producer, and editor; and Chris Moyles, co-producer, editor, and sound engineer. This episode is supported by Bookworks of Whitefish, offering new books of all genres, stationery, and puzzles. Open 11AM to 6PM Monday through Saturday. Located in downtown Whitefish, Montana, in the Third & Spokane Building.
The Write Question logo and brand (2022) was designed by Molly Russell. You can see more of her work at iamthemollruss.com and on Instagram @iamthemollruss.
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