eBook dim sum

eBook dim sum

For Jennifer 8. Lee, reading a Kindle is like eating Chinese food.

Subversive in the City

Subversive in the City

David Goodwillie tackles two of his favorite subjects, radicalism and New York.

Not Afraid

Not Afraid

Mary Gaitskill takes a stand against literary snobbery.

Looking Good

Looking Good

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh can and does judge books by their covers.

Working her charms

Working her charms

Kathryn Harrison offers some book picks and advice on hypnotizing bunnies.

Stacked Up mashup

Stacked Up mashup

A spin through Stacked Up’s greatest hits with our awesome guest authors.

The freewheelin’ Susan Orlean

The freewheelin’ Susan Orlean

Breakin’ rules, praisin’ Faulkner and raisin’ chickens.

Running at the Deacon

Running at the Deacon

Rich Cohen charges headlong at his subjects, from cover to cover.

Call it gumbo

Call it gumbo

Debut novelist and blogger Ken Wheaton’s shelves are a lot like his recipe for gumbo.

From the mixed-up shelves of Amanda Stern

From the mixed-up shelves of Amanda Stern

A reformed comedian finds her voice in fiction.

Just the facts for A. J. Jacobs

Just the facts for A. J. Jacobs

Life is one big experiment for the ever-so-rational A. J. Jacobs.

Alphabetizing with Darin Strauss

Alphabetizing with Darin Strauss

A reformed slob turned Dewey-Decimal devotee.

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh loves Stacked Up TV

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh loves Stacked Up TV

It’s official: he really, really does.

David Goodwillie’s desert island picks

David Goodwillie’s desert island picks

A Paris travelogue and a slice of Americana help pass the time.

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh’s Desert Island Picks

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh’s Desert Island Picks

Just the classics, please–the bigger, the better.

Behind the scenes at Happy Ending

Behind the scenes at Happy Ending

The reading series that dares to be different.

Rich Cohen’s desert island picks

Rich Cohen’s desert island picks

True life trumps fiction for the hard-hitting journalist.

Amanda Stern’s desert island picks

Amanda Stern’s desert island picks

A Stephen King recommendation spun into PR gold. Swann’s Way: In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace On Writing by Stephen King English Composition and Grammar by John E. Warriner

Family Matters

Family Matters

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh on the lasting influence of his uncle, writer Mark Harris.

You say you want a revolution

You say you want a revolution

Growing up in the shadow of the Socialist Workers Party.

Go get your own favorite!

Go get your own favorite!

Ken Wheaton’s desert island pick appropriates a Czech classic from a friend.

The Word O’ Wheaton

The Word O’ Wheaton

Ken Wheaton on the finer points of the blogosphere.

Monkey Business

Monkey Business

Ken Wheaton is unashamedly attached to monkeys.

A writer walks into a Blues club…

A writer walks into a Blues club…

Rich Cohen finds a wormhole to another era with Chess Records.

Referencing pop culture

Referencing pop culture

Rich Cohen on why celebrities matter in his work.

Bar Mitzvah Disco

Bar Mitzvah Disco

Baseball legends Phil Rizzuto and Bill White crash Rich Cohen’s party.

Rilke as self-help guru

Rilke as self-help guru

Finding answers to life’s big questions in an unlikely source

Frankly, Amanda

Frankly, Amanda

Naming a character gets tricky

Talk to the animals

Talk to the animals

Susan Orlean gives Dr. Doolittle a run for his money.

The Stacked Up promo

The Stacked Up promo

Stacking up with Susan Orlean, A. J. Jacobs, Darin Strauss and Laurie Sandell

Who is making me finish this book?

Who is making me finish this book?

The should-read that somehow never gets read.

Susan Orlean’s desert island picks

Susan Orlean’s desert island picks

Nothing but her whole library will do.

In the kitchen with Susan Orlean

In the kitchen with Susan Orlean

Cookbook porn that’s safe for work.

A. J.’s dummies guide

A. J.’s dummies guide

A. J. Jacobs’ desert island revenge fantasy takes aim at William F. Buckley.

Darin Strauss’s desert island picks

Darin Strauss’s desert island picks

Adultery, nymphet obsession and nervous breakdowns.

Laurie Sandell’s desert island picks

Laurie Sandell’s desert island picks

Two memoirs, one Bildungsroman, all truth.

Why We Can’t Wait

Why We Can’t Wait

From the civil rights era, one irreplaceable book in A. J. Jacobs’ library.

Fan mail from Madonna

Fan mail from Madonna

Is Madonna really a fan of Darin Strauss?

Deconstructing Stuart Little

Deconstructing Stuart Little

Why E. B. White’s story is not safe for bedtime.

Not Afraid

gaitskill_dontcryGuest Author: Mary Gaitskill
Her books:
Don’t Cry published by Vintage/Anchor
Veronica published by Random House
Because They Wanted to published by Simon & Schuster
Two Girls, Fat and Thin published by Simon & Schuster
Bad Behavior published by Simon & Schuster

THE STACK

Don’t Cry by Mary Gaitskill
Agaat by Marlene van Niekerk
Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White, Garth Williams and Rosemary Wells
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupéry and Richard Howard
Monsieur Pain by Roberto Bolaño
The Easter Parade by Richard Yates
Drown by Junot Díaz
The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City by Jennifer Toth

MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE
“I Told You Not to Write Again”
Arthur Yoria
Magnatune Records
“How Can You Be So Sure of Yourself?”
Lee Bob Watson
Grass Roots Record Co.

2 Responses to “Not Afraid”

  1. The Second Pass Says:

    [...] Gaitskill walks around a bookstore, filmed by the folks at Stacked Up. She’s very candid and charming. And she gets big points from me for lifting up a copy of [...]

  2. Someguy Says:

    I used to feel the same way about Bolano. Then I read him, and now I no longer feel that way. The length of his works can be off-putting, though.

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