Curtis Sittenfeld – författare

Lee Fiora är en intelligent och observant fjortonåring när hennes pappa släpper av henne utanför sovsalen till den prestigefyllda internatskolan i Massachusetts. Hon har lämnat sin livliga lyckliga familj efter att ha sökt ett stipendium till Ault som hon, åtminstone delvis, valt på grund av den glassiga broschyr hon beundrat. Men Lee upptäcker snart att skolan är en sluten värld av blaserade, attraktiva ungdomar som tillbringar sina lov på exklusiva semesterorter och som bara kommunicerar med sina likar. Pengar är något alla andra har, men ingen talar om. I deras sällskap blir Lee någon hon inte vill vara, någon hon inte ens känner igen. Hennes försök att närma sig andra slutar oftast i att hon sluter sig än mer. Hur ska man veta vem man är, när ingenting omkring påminner en?

Curtis Sittenfelds debutbok är en insiktsfull, hjärtslitande och rolig uppväxthistoria, likaväl som ett skickligt utforskande av klass och

kön i ett drivhus av tonårsångest, sex och ambition. I en klass för sig fick ett jublande mottagande när den först gavs ut 2005, och ses idag som en modern klassiker.

Hillary Rodham är 1971 en ung och lovande kvinna: hennes examenstal på Wellesley College har uppmärksammats av tidskriften Life, hon studerar juridik vid Yale Law School och hon är aktiv inom student- och kvinnorörelsen. Då träffar hon Bill Clinton. Bill är en stilig och karismatisk studentkamrat från sydstaterna, redan med siktet inställt på en politisk karriär. I varandra hittar de en djup samhörighet som ingen av dem tidigare upplevt, varken intellektuellt, känslomässigt eller fysiskt.

I verkligheten följde Hillary med Bill hem till Arkansas och han friade flera gånger. Trots att han fick nobben mer än en gång svarade hon som alla vet till slut ja och blev Hillary Clinton.

I Curtis Sittenfelds härligt fantasifulla roman går Hillary i stället en annan väg. Tvivlen kring det eventuella äktenskapet får henne att trots allt välja den svåra brytningen och lämna Arkansas. Under fyra årtionden stakar hon ut en egen bana, såväl offentligt som privat, en bana som återkommande korsas av Bill Clinton och som väcker frågor om de avvägningar vi alla måste göra när vi skapar oss ett liv.

Curtis Sittenfeld väver mästerligt ihop fängslande fiktion med verkliga historiska händelser och skapar en skärpt och träffsäker berättelse för vår tid. Rodham är en unik och oförglömlig roman som utforskar den ensamhet, moraliska kluvenhet och järnhårda beslutsamhet som kännetecknar strävandena efter politisk makt, men också av den glöd och de smärtsamma kompromisser som krävs av en kvinna med ambitioner i en värld som fortfarande till största delen styrs av män.

Sally Milz is a sketch writer for The Night Owls, a late-night live comedy show that airs every Saturday. With a couple of heartbreaks under her belt, she's long abandoned the search for love, settling instead for the occasional hook-up, career success, and a close relationship with her stepfather to round out a satisfying life. But when Sally's friend and fellow writer Danny Horst begins dating Annabel, a glamorous actress who guest-hosted the show, he joins the not-so-exclusive group of talented but average-looking and even dorky men at the show-and in society at large-who've gotten romantically involved with incredibly beautiful and accomplished women. Sally channels her annoyance into a sketch called The Danny Horst Rule, poking fun at this phenomenon while underscoring how unlikely it is that the reverse would ever happen for a woman. Enter Noah Brewster, a pop music sensation with a reputation for dating models, who signed on as both host and musical guest for this week's show. Dazzled by his charms, Sally hits it off with Noah instantly, and as they collaborate on one sketch after another, she begins to wonder if there might actually be sparks flying. But this isn't a romantic comedy-it's real life. And in real life, someone like him would never date someone like her . . . right? With her keen observations and trademark ability to bring complex women to life on the page, Curtis Sittenfeld explores the neurosis-inducing and heart-fluttering wonder of love, while slyly dissecting the social rituals of romance and gender relations in the modern age.

“To read their stories felt to me the way I suspect other people feel hearing jazz for the first time,” recalls Curtis Sittenfeld of her initial encounter with the Best American Short Stories series. “They were windows into emotions I had and hadn’t had, into other settings and circumstances and observations and relationships.” Decades later, Sittenfeld was met by the same feeling selecting the stories for this year’s edition. The result is a striking and nuanced collection, bringing to life awkward college students, disgraced public figures, raunchy grandparents, and mystical godmothers. To read these stories is to experience the transporting joys of discovery and affirmation, and to realize that story writing in America continues to flourish. 

THE BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES 2020 INCLUDES T. C. BOYLE • EMMA CLINE • MARY GAITSKILL 

ANDREA LEE • ELIZABETH McCRACKEN • ALEJANDRO PUYANA WILLIAM PEI SHIH • KEVIN WILSON and others

In her second story collection, Sittenfeld shows why she’s as beloved for her short fiction as she is for her novels. In these dazzling stories, she conjures up characters so real that they seem like old friends, laying bare the moments when their long held beliefs are overturned. In “The Patron Saints of Middle Age,” a woman visits two friends she hasn’t seen since her divorce. In “A for Alone,” a married artist embarks on a creative project intended to disprove the so-called Mike Pence Rule, which suggests that women and men can’t spend time alone together without lusting after each other. And in “Lost but Not Forgotten,” Sittenfeld gives readers of her novel Prep a window into the world of her beloved character Lee Fiora, decades later, when Lee attends an alumni reunion at her boarding school. Hilarious, thought-provoking, and full of tenderness for her characters, Sittenfeld’s stories peel back layer after layer of our inner lives, keeping us riveted to the page with her utterly distinctive voice.

In her second story collection, Sittenfeld shows why she’s as beloved for her short fiction as she is for her novels. In these dazzling stories, she conjures up characters so real that they seem like old friends, laying bare the moments when their long held beliefs are overturned. In “The Patron Saints of Middle Age,” a woman visits two friends she hasn’t seen since her divorce. In “A for Alone,” a married artist embarks on a creative project intended to disprove the so-called Mike Pence Rule, which suggests that women and men can’t spend time alone together without lusting after each other. And in “Lost but Not Forgotten,” Sittenfeld gives readers of her novel Prep a window into the world of her beloved character Lee Fiora, decades later, when Lee attends an alumni reunion at her boarding school. Hilarious, thought-provoking, and full of tenderness for her characters, Sittenfeld’s stories peel back layer after layer of our inner lives, keeping us riveted to the page with her utterly distinctive voice.

Life is (not)* a Romantic Comedy... With a series of heartbreaks under her belt, Sally Milz - successful script writer for a legendary late-night TV comedy show - has long abandoned the search for love. But when her friend and fellow writer begins to date a glamorous actress, he joins the growing club of interesting but average-looking men who get romantically involvded with accomplished, beautiful women. Sally channels her annoyance into a sketch, poking fun at this 'social rule'. The reverse never happens for a woman. Then Sally meets Noah, a pop idol with a reputation for dating models. But this isn't a romantic comedy - it's real life. Would someone like him ever date someone like her?