{"id":467,"date":"2014-07-01T17:04:07","date_gmt":"2014-07-02T00:04:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/?p=467"},"modified":"2014-07-01T17:04:07","modified_gmt":"2014-07-02T00:04:07","slug":"josh-weil-novel-launched","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/?p=467","title":{"rendered":"Josh Weil novel launched"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m so proud of young novelist Josh Weil, whom Mendocino Coast Writers Conference <\/a>picked as a rising star and invited to be on faculty at our 2013 conference. Here’s news from Josh worth sharing:<\/p>\n

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Dear Friends,<\/div>\n
I\u2019ve got a bunch of news to share with you\u2014the first reviews of\u00a0The Great Glass Sea,\u00a0<\/em>a just-released long-list for a <\/strong><\/span>\"\"<\/a><\/span>literary prize, the most incredible first-edition program I\u2019ve ever seen,\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>my complete book tour schedule<\/strong>\u2014but there are two reasons, above all else, that this\u00a0issue of The Gazette is a pretty special edition.
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First,\u00a0The Great Glass Sea\u00a0<\/em>is, as of tomorrow, officially out in the world.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Here I am with the very first copies I got to hold in my hands:<\/div>\n
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I hope you get to hold one soon, too. \u00a0In part, because the folks at Grove Atlantic have simply created such a beautiful book, with rough-cut pages and my drawings for endpapers and illustrations<\/span>\u00a0at the start of each chapter \u2014 the kind of object that reminds me why ebooks will never totally replace the real thing:<\/div>\n
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But mostly I\u2019m hoping to share the book with you because it means so much to me. \u00a0It feels like a part of me, as if I\u2019m sending a child of mine out into the world. \u00a0After all, I\u2019ve nurtured it for five years, now. \u00a0And I\u2019ve worked harder on it than I\u2019ve worked on anything in my entire life. \u00a0It\u2019s been all consuming. \u00a0It\u2019s taken everything I had as writer. \u00a0And it would mean the world to me if you might take a look at it now.<\/div>\n
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You can get ahold of your own copy here:\u00a0Indiebound<\/a>,\u00a0Powell\u2019s<\/a>,\u00a0Barnes & Noble<\/a>\u00a0 or even\u00a0Amazon<\/a>\u00a0(though please support your local bookstore if you can!).<\/div>\n
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Or you can pick one up at one of the many\u00a0readings<\/strong>\u00a0I\u2019m doing over the summer. \u00a0There\u2019s a good chance I\u2019ll be coming somewhere near you on my cross-country (and across again) tour. \u00a0Click\u00a0<\/a>here<\/a>\u00a0for the\u00a0full schedule.<\/strong> I would love so much to see you, say hi, catch up, or simply sign a copy.<\/div>\n
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The\u00a0pre-publicaton reviews<\/strong>\u00a0have been all I could have hoped for:<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201c[An] impressive debut…As broad as its themes are\u2014touching on political, philosophical and historical divisions\u2014Weil\u2019s first novel is rooted in family and fine storytelling; it’s an engaging, highly satisfying tale blessed by sensitivity and a gifted imagination.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u2014\u00a0<\/a><\/span>Kirkus (Starred Review)<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cA tale of longing and sadness, threaded by Russian folklore and heavy with the weight of love…resplendent and incandescent.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u2014\u00a0<\/span>Library Journal<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cA well-timed dystopian tale, the novel beautifully details both the politics of [an] hypothetical Russia\u2014\u201coligarchs bred beneath the clamp of communism let loose upon loot-fueled dreams\u201d\u2014and its impact on one small family.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u2014\u00a0<\/span>Publisher\u2019s Weekly<\/a><\/div>\n
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And the first newspaper review (out even before the official publication date!) was even better:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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“If complex literary novels really are done for, Josh Weil must\u2019ve missed the text message. His formidable \u201cThe Great Glass Sea\u201d knits together strands of traditional Slavic folklore and futuristic speculative fiction to create a passionate reflection on technology and personal happiness. Spanning almost 500 pages, the novel poses mind-bending questions about politics, ecology and the ambivalent closeness of siblings\u2026Weil pulls off dazzling strokes of storytelling\u2026His distinctive voice obliges readers to slow down and swish certain passages around before swallowing…While keeping the sophisticated themes afloat (science vs. nature, the state vs. the individual, family obligation vs. ambition), almost every page flows with respect for the flawed, endearing heroes, Dima and Yarik. Pushing the envelope on literary artistry even further, each chapter begins with a pen-and-ink illustration by the author\u2026.A genre-bending epic steeped in archetypal stories, \u201cThe Great Glass Sea,\u201d rises above the usual Cain-and-Abel formula by way of sensitive, resourceful craftsmanship.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
\u2014\u00a0<\/span>The Atlanta Journal-Constitution<\/a>\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
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But you know what might be the most exciting thing that\u2019s happened yet? \u00a0<\/span>This<\/a>:<\/span><\/div>\n
Powell\u2019s, the great independent bookstore in Portland, OR, selected\u00a0<\/strong>The Great Glass Sea<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>for its amazing\u00a0Indiespensable program<\/a>:\u00a0a specially designed slipcase, a signed copy of the novel, a booklet of an extensive interview with me, and other crazy-cool extras.<\/div>\n
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Although, this was pretty cool, too: Just last week I got word that\u00a0The Great Glass Sea<\/em>\u00a0has been\u00a0long-listed<\/a>\u00a0(along with about 20 other terrific novels) for\u00a0The Center of Fiction\u2019s Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize<\/strong>. \u00a0No matter what happens from here on out, it\u2019s an honor to be up there with such great debuts by authors I admire so much.<\/div>\n
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And, in case you\u2019re wondering what all the fuss is about, here\u2019s a chance for you to check it out yourself: an\u00a0excerpt<\/strong>\u00a0from the novel over at\u00a0Guernica<\/a>\u00a0and an\u00a0extract<\/strong>\u00a0from the book online in\u00a0Granta<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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And\u00a0if you\u2019re wondering why the heck I wrote this book<\/strong>\u00a0about Russia\u00a0<\/strong>(of all things!)<\/em>, just yesterday,\u00a0The New York Times<\/em>\u00a0Magazine ran my essay\u2014Looking for the Russia I Once Knew<\/a>\u2014about, well, exactly that.<\/div>\n
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\"\"<\/a>And in\u00a0really<\/em>\u00a0non-book-related news, here\u2019s the second reason this gazette is special:<\/strong><\/div>\n
Yup, Jen\u2019s pregnant. \u00a0With a boy.<\/p>\n
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Although maybe that\u00a0is<\/em>\u00a0book-related after all:<\/div>\n
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And, heck, while we\u2019re at it let\u2019s make it\u00a0three<\/em>\u00a0babies. \u00a0Since it happens to be my birthday today. \u00a0Here\u2019s me 38 years ago:<\/div>\n
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And here\u2019s me, now, signing off and saying thank you, again, for continuing to care about what that tyke\u2019s grown up to love, what the writer he became now does, these words on a page that I am so lucky to be able to share with you.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Much warmth and thanks,<\/div>\n
Josh<\/div>\n

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I’m so proud of young novelist Josh Weil, whom Mendocino Coast Writers Conference picked as a rising star and invited to be on faculty at our 2013 conference. Here’s news from Josh worth sharing: Dear Friends, I\u2019ve got a bunch of news to share with you\u2014the first reviews of\u00a0The Great Glass Sea,\u00a0a just-released long-list for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[76,10,103,5],"tags":[201,12,202,402],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=467"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":482,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467\/revisions\/482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}