Synopses & Reviews
Original stories & artwork by: Daniel Alarcon, Amy Bloom, Kate Bornstein, Alex Chee, T Cooper, Keith Knight, Ron Kovic, Paul La Farge, Felicia Luna Lemus, Adam Mansbach, Valerie Miner, Tommy O'Malley, Neal Pollack, David Rees, Sarah Schulman, Darin Strauss, and Benjamin Weissman.
As political dishonesty continues to infect the ongoing process of history's creation, a diverse group of America's best fiction writers take on the challenge of creating counter-narratives in A Fictional History of the United States with Huge Chunks Missing. This ground-breaking anthology seeks to challenge, tease, and expand upon the hegemonic, single-narrative of mainstream American history - moving beyond the mere canonical to create a patchwork, anecdotal history of the young nation. Here are the moments and the people left out of the textbooks. And here is what else happened - on the margins of American life - on the dates and during the historical moments we were all forced to memorize.
From an eclectic and celebrated array of authors and cartoonists - from Amy Bloom to Darin Strauss, Ron Kovic (making his short-fiction debut) to David Rees, Neal Pollack to Daniel Alarcon -- come stories that sweep from 1424 (when the Chinese discovered America, in Alexander Chee's "Wampeshau") to the new McCarthyism of a post-9/11 world (in Valerie Miner's "Apprehensions"). A Fictional History of the United States with Huge Chunks Missingcalls into question everything from the moon landing to the Lindbergh kidnapping, the Vietnam War draft to the invention of anti-depressants. Riveting, inventive, timely, and politically crucial, this collection of original stories is in the best tradition of America's literary commitment to seeking truth . . . even if it happens to be revealed in fiction.
T Cooper's debut novel Some of the Parts(Akashic, 2002), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers selection and a Quality Paperback Book Club pick. T's second novel, Lipshitz Six, or Two Angry Blondes, will be published by Dutton in February 2006. T lives in New York City.
Adam Mansbachis the author of the novels Angry Black White Boy(Crown, 2005), Shackling Water(Doubleday, 2002), and the poetry collection genius b-boy cynics getting weeded in the garden of delights(Subway & Elevated). He lives in Berkeley, California.
Synopsis
This is a peoples history with tongue in cheek, delightfully funny, imaginative, but with a subtle undertone of seriousness. I enjoyed it immensely.”
--HOWARD ZINN, author of A Peoples History of the United States
Original stories and artwork by:
Daniel Alarcon, Amy Bloom, Kate Bornstein, Alexander Chee, T Cooper, Keith Knight, Ron Kovic, Paul La Farge, Felicia Luna Lemus, Adam Mansbach, Valerie Miner, Tommy OMalley, Neal Pollack, David Rees, Sarah Schulman, Darin Strauss, and Benjamin Weissman.
History is distorted the moment it's recorded--and in these politically dishonest times, challenging the stories we're told is more important than ever. In this groundbreaking anthology of original fiction, a diverse group of America's best writers takes on the task of creating counter-narratives to mainstream American history. Here are some of the moments and the people left out of the textbooks. Here is what else happened--on the margins of American life, and in between the lines of our history books.
A Fictional History of the United States with Huge Chunks Missing brings together an eclectic array of celebrated authors and cartoonists to create a patchwork, anecdotal history of this complicated country. From the Chinese discovery of America in 1426 to the new McCarthyism of a post-9-11 world, this collection recasts everything from the moon landing to the Lindbergh kidnapping, westward expansion to the sexual proclivities of Civil War officers. Riveting, inventive, and politically vital, this anthology picks up--and yanks on--America's supposed commitment to seeking the truth . . . even if that truth is revealed in fiction.
T Cooper is the author of the novels Lipshitz Six, or Two Angry Blondes (Dutton) and Some of the Parts (Akashic). T lives in New York City.
Adam Mansbach is the author of the novels Angry Black White Boy (Crown), Shackling Water (Doubleday), and the forthcoming The End of the Jews (Spiegel and Grau/Doubleday). He lives in Berkeley, California
Synopsis
Fiction. Politics and History. Edited by T Cooper and Adam Mansbach, this anthology takes on the challenge of creating counter-narratives in an age when rampant political dishonesty infects the always-ongoing process of history's creation. In A FICTIONAL HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES (WITH HUGE CHUNKS MISSING), a diverse group of writers offer up accounts of history not written by the winners, complicating traditional, received views of the American narrative with their own revitalized depictions. Contributors include: Darin Strauss, Daniel Alarcon, Amy Bloom, Kate Bornstein, Alex Chee, Ron Kovic, Paul LaFarge, David Rees, Keith Knight, Felicia Luna Lemus, Valerie Miner, Tommy O'Malley, Neal Pollack, Scott Poulson-Bryant, Sara Schulman and Benjamin Weissman.
About the Author
T Cooper's debut novel Some of the Parts, was a B&N Discover Program selection and a Quality Paperback Book Club pick. Her work has appeared in many publications, including the New York Times, the Believer, and The Future Dictionary of America (McSweeney?s Books). Her second novel, Lipshitz Six, or Two Angry Blondes is forthcoming from Penguin/Plume. T lives in New York City. Adam Mansbach is the author of the novels Angry Black White Boy (Crown, 2005) and Shackling Water (Doubleday). His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The San Francisco Chronicle, Brooklyn Noir (Akashic 2004), The Best Music Writing 2004 (DaCapo), and elsewhere.