A reading with Alison Bechdel

On Monday night Alison Bechdel came to Boswell Books, a lovely independent bookseller in Milwaukee, for a reading of her latest graphic memoir, Are You My Mother? I was introduced to Fun Home, her first novel, in an American Women's Writing class. We started with the traditional classics and progressed into contemporaries and then finished with Bechdel's Fun Home. I'm not sure I would have picked this one up on my own; it was my first graphic novel and at that point I didn't consider them "real" books. It turned out to be a longtime favorite that I lent to friends and family. I was quite excited about her new book and even more excited when I found out she was coming my way for a reading! My sister read Fun Home as well, so she joined me for the reading which was awesome since I normally go to these things on my own.

In person, Alison Bechdel is brilliant. She articulates herself so well and precisely that it's just a joy to hear her speak. Her love of books doesn't just come through in her work, rife with countless literary allusions. Prior to the reading, she was browsing the shelves of the bookstore. After she was introduced and before the reading began she discussed her book, telling us that the relationship with her mother was just one of the many strands of the book. It's also about the self and how we think about our own self. The book is preoccupied with Virginia Woolf, who makes an appearance as a character, and her connections between her diary, memoir and writing, and fiction writing. As a whole, Bechdel explains, the novel is internal, recursive, and interior.

When asked during the Q and A what her mother's reaction to the book was, Bechdel said her first response was, "Well, it coheres."

I didn't get any pictures of the actual reading, because no one else was taking pictures or even had their camera out and I didn't want to be that person. So the photo you see above is from a completely different reading at Politics and Prose in DC. But, you know, it's similar. I did manage to snap a stealth photo on my phone while waiting in line to get my book signed. Like the Eugenides reading, I was nervous to meet such a talented writer. I wasn't as nervous as I was for Eugenides, when I was literally shaking.

I'm about halfway through Are You My Mother? and while it's much different from Fun Home, in many ways it's also similar as it focuses on finding one's identity and looking back on the self. If you haven't read any Bechdel, I really recommend you get your hands on Fun Home! I really don't think you'll be disappointed.

A Reading with Jeffrey Eugenides

Photo from the Boswell Books Blog*

I enjoyed a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Boswell Books yesterday for a reading with Jeffrey Eugenides. You guys all know that I'm a big fan of his work and when I heard he was coming to Milwaukee to do a reading I immediately marked my calendar and made sure to keep the entire day open. The reading was scheduled at noon, so the night before the reading I took it easy and went to bed early, knowing I would want to get there early and get a good seat. (I sat just behind the tan leather couch pictured to the right, above.)

I couldn't have been more pleased with the reading. Eugenides chose two passages to read, one that lasted about 15 minutes, and another that lasted about three. The first detailed Madeline's less-than-ideal love life in college, and the other discussed the idea of the ever-evolving art student. It was truly wonderful to hear Eugenides read his own work; his clever wit is even more amplified when he reads his passages himself. After the reading he took questions from the audience. It's no surprise that Eugenides humor transcends his writing, as even his responses to most questions had the audience laughing. A few things I learned about Jeffrey Eugenides yesterday:

• He teaches a creative writing class at Princeton every Wednesday. His wife swears he comes back home with more energy on Wednesday evenings after his "brush with youth."
• Eugenides has been working on a short story collection that is almost finished. He confirmed that we will not have to wait another nine years for it to come out. Yay!
• When asked if it was intentional that the theme of pollution, both metaphorically and symbolically, permeated his works, he stated, "Well, I grew up in Detroit." Enough said. (He actually expanded on this response to mention that when he was seven and eight he was quite disillusioned with the state of the world and why. He doesn't purposefully include these descriptions of pollution, but he isn't surprised they are there.)
• Noting he had never been to a reading so early (noon) Eugenides mentioned that "writers are temperamentally nocturnal."
• Eugenides admitted that his writing process is quite disjointed. He didn't get the idea for writing The Marriage Plot until until he wrote a couple hundred pages of a different novel involving Madeline's parents. He didn't like the tone or the direction of the novel, and it wasn't until he decided to explore his character's daughter, Madeline, that he felt he had something. He also joked that he often leaves one demanding novel behind unfinished in favor of a newer, younger novel, only to discover that it too proves to be just as demanding.
• In Middlesex, the translation of Cal's brother's nickname Chapter 11 proved to be a problem when translating the book. The name refers to the US tax law Chapter 11 and since this law is specific to the US alone, those in Europe and Asia were a bit confused.
• When asked if he liked to write, Eugenides admitted that he does, but there is also something masochistic about it.

Following the Q&A was the book signing, where I waited in line to get my copy of The Marriage Plot personalized and even sneak in a picture. While waiting I met a girl about my age who drove eight hours from someplace in Michigan to attend the reading. Now that is dedication! She even offered to take a photo for me when she saw me eagerly clutching my camera as I inched forward in line.

Can I just tell you how nervous I was to meet Jeffrey Eugenides? I was so scared I would say something stupid, and I was literally shaking as I stood next to him for the photo above. But, all in all, I was so happy I had the opportunity to attend this event. If you get a chance to do the same, I highly encourage it! You won't be disappointed.

*I was too chicken to take a picture while Eugenides was reading, for fear of distracting him with my flash and getting dirty looks.