Got poisoned against Dreiser long ago. Wasn’t expecting in my 40s that he’d became one of my favorite writers. JENNIE GERHARDT is a masterpiece. Just right up my alley in every way. Tragic and beautiful. (The 1933 film adaptation with Sylvia Sidney is also very good.)
UNE AFFAIRE DE FAMILLE (aka SAINT OF THE NARROWS STREET) is out from Éditions Gallmeister in France on July 1st!
Hell of a good mail day—galleys of HEAVY SUGAR have landed. Out 1/5/27. Preorder now. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/828881...
Two favorites from when I was a kid. Hadn‘t seen them in forever but they recently popped up on Prime—I could be wrong, but I think it’s the first time they’ve been streaming. Both hold up. Both still hilarious.
Dylan’s incredible NYT piece about being in his 80s (only non-Knicks thing I’ve consumed today)
Weeping. Been waiting my whole life for this. Unreal. What a team. JB!!!!!
Didn’t sleep. Have watched the OG tip-in approximately 10,000 times. So many incredible moments beyond that—OG’s block, Alvarado’s spin move, JB being JB… Thank you to the Wu-Tang Clan for cleansing the Garden of the bad vibes from Monday & setting things right at the half. Build a statue of OG.
Cover reveal for my new novel, HEAVY SUGAR, out January 2027 from @sohopress.bsky.social! Love this art so damn much. More dope here: www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/828881...
SAINT OF THE NARROWS STREET is out in France on 7/1 from the mighty Éditions Gallmeister. It’s been retitled UNE AFFAIRE DE FAMILLE, which I wasn’t so sure about at first but have come around on—has a nice Zola ring to it. Translated by Simon Baril and Juliane Nivelt. Big fan of the cover art.
Two of the best albums of the year came out yesterday. In heavy rotation around here.
Criterion putting out LITTLE ODESSA is the best damn news. Between this and the reception PAPER TIGER has gotten at Cannes, it’s great to see James Gray getting the recognition he’s long deserved. One of my biggest artistic heroes.
Just picked up my preorders of these two reissues at Square Books. The Eugene Manlove Rhodes book is from University of New Mexico Press (PASÓ POR AQUÍ is the novella John Sayles has adapted for his forthcoming film I PASSED THIS WAY). Joan Silber’s IN THE CITY is from Hagfish.
Have long loved the movie, which is a masterpiece, so I finally read the book (picked up this copy last year at Lucky Dog in Dallas), also a masterpiece. Need to get more by Edna Sherry.
LETTY LYNTON and LAST SUMMER coming to Blu-ray on the same day (6/30) from Warner Archive!
I wrote about Leonard Cohen’s “Everybody Knows” in PUMP UP THE VOLUME for @southwestreview.bsky.social’s Needle Drops column. Read it here: southwestreview.com/volume-111-n...
Got the new one from hero and pal Barry Gifford in the mail, THE EXCEPTION: UNCLE BUCK’S BOOK OF IRREPRESSIBLE NAVIGATION. Out 5/12 from @sevenstories.bsky.social. Uncle Buck is such a killer character. And that Jim Harrison blurb is an all-timer.
Unveiling of Bill Beckwith’s Larry Brown sculpture at Morgan Park in Oxford this afternoon. Moving as hell. Beyond thankful for his work, which drew me to this town.
Oxford folks: pal and hero Willy Vlautin reads on Thacker tomorrow! Hope to see you there!
My short story “Arlene” from the Hitchcock anthology is longlisted for a Dagger! Great company. Thanks to Maxim Jakubowski!
Excited to announce I’ve got a new novel on the way in early 2027! Set over a single day around Thanksgiving 1991, HEAVY SUGAR is a screwball noir that pinballs from Throggs Neck to Gravesend. Thrilled I’m back with Nick Whitney at @sohopress.bsky.social.
New Louise Kennedy! Easily my most anticipated book of 2026. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/735417...