Cover design by Jakob Vala
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My first book, My Autobiography of Carson McCullers, will be released by Tin House on February 4, 2020. You can pre-order a signed copy from Collected Works Bookstore in Santa Fe, NM. Read excerpts from the book in O, the Oprah Magazine and The Paris Review Daily.
“In lucid, distilled, honest prose, Jenn Shapland teaches us about McCullers, the desire for recognition, loneliness, the complexities of queer history, the seductions and resistances of the archive, and, all throughout, love.” - Maggie Nelson, author of The Argonauts “Gorgeous, symphonic, tender, and brilliant, My Autobiography of Carson McCullers is a monumental achievement. In this genre-bending work of nonfiction, Shapland brings the full weight of her intellect to bear on one of literature’s most important questions: How do queer readers find the truth―and themselves―between the lines?” - Carmen Maria Machado, author of Her Body and Other Parties |
“You don’t have to be a Carson McCullers fan to admire this remarkable book. It’s a biography that’s also a memoir, a story of obsession and longing. Captivating and trenchant and moving, Shapland’s genre-mixing debut will stay with me a long time.”
- R.O. Kwon, author of The Incendiaries
“You do not need to be a queer woman, a lover of Carson McCuller's fiction, or interested in the mysterious junctures between our own lives and those of our favorite artists to love this book, but for those of us who are those things, Jenn Shapland's memoir is a particular trove of delights. My favorite biographies are full of historical literary gossip and interested in the shadow selves of public persons. My favorite memoirs are those that scrutinize the self as an unreliable source of narrative truth and the one we must nonetheless rely upon. My Autobiography of Carson McCullers manages to do all of this in earnest and honest and riveting vignettes. It is a detective story and a dissection of selfhood, a puzzle every piece of which pleased me as it clicked into place.”
- Melissa Febos, author of Abandon Me and Whip Smart
“Jenn Shapland’s My Autobiography of Carson McCullers is indeed part autobiography, part criticism, part memoir, and 100% human, reminding us of how books and writers can take our hands and lead us to uncover the mystery of our hearts. I’ve never read a book quite like it.”
- Ann Hood
Signed copies are available for pre-order through Collected Works Bookstore in Santa Fe, NM.
You can also pre-order My Autobiography of Carson McCullers at your local independent bookstore, or from:
IndieBound / Powell’s / Amazon / Barnes & Noble
- R.O. Kwon, author of The Incendiaries
“You do not need to be a queer woman, a lover of Carson McCuller's fiction, or interested in the mysterious junctures between our own lives and those of our favorite artists to love this book, but for those of us who are those things, Jenn Shapland's memoir is a particular trove of delights. My favorite biographies are full of historical literary gossip and interested in the shadow selves of public persons. My favorite memoirs are those that scrutinize the self as an unreliable source of narrative truth and the one we must nonetheless rely upon. My Autobiography of Carson McCullers manages to do all of this in earnest and honest and riveting vignettes. It is a detective story and a dissection of selfhood, a puzzle every piece of which pleased me as it clicked into place.”
- Melissa Febos, author of Abandon Me and Whip Smart
“Jenn Shapland’s My Autobiography of Carson McCullers is indeed part autobiography, part criticism, part memoir, and 100% human, reminding us of how books and writers can take our hands and lead us to uncover the mystery of our hearts. I’ve never read a book quite like it.”
- Ann Hood
Signed copies are available for pre-order through Collected Works Bookstore in Santa Fe, NM.
You can also pre-order My Autobiography of Carson McCullers at your local independent bookstore, or from:
IndieBound / Powell’s / Amazon / Barnes & Noble
Reviews and Lists
The New York Times, Megan O'Grady, "She Found Carson McCullers’s Love Letters. They Taught Her Something About Herself," February 4, 2020
“Shapland’s book is the kind of state-of-the-form reckoning that makes one wish there were more like it.”
Amazon.com Best Books of February: Biography and Memoir
Los Angeles Review of Books, Ellie Duke, "Rewriting McCullers," February 4, 2020
“At its core, Shapland’s book is about gaps — in stories, in language, in history, in ourselves — and how we attempt to fill them.”
Indy Week, Sarah Edwards, "How to Become Carson McCullers," February 4, 2020
The A.V. Club, Kelsey J. Waite, "An affecting new memoir frees Carson McCullers—and its writer—from the closet," February 3, 2020
Indiebound, IndieNext List, February 2020
Austin American Statesman, Joe Gross, "In My Autobiography of Carson McCullers, Jenn Shapland Sees Herself," January 30, 2020
Nashville Scene, Jane Marcellus, "Jenn Shapland’s Memoir Explores the Hidden Life of Carson McCullers" January 30, 2020
The A.V. Club, "5 New Books to Read in February" January 29, 2020
Lit Hub, "Lit Hub’s Most Anticipated Books of 2020" January 14, 2020
Autostraddle, Kate Gordon, "Jenn Shapland Names What Needs Naming in My Autobiography of Carson McCullers” January 7, 2020
“This book will change the way you think about the truth. … Shapland possesses the perfect storm of talents to push McCullers’s love life, and beautiful writing, into the light of this century during a moment when we need all the queer heroes we can get.”
Buzzfeed News, Arianna Rebolini and Tomi Obaro, "These Are Our Most Highly Anticipated Books Of 2020" January 7, 2020
Chicago Tribune, Laura Pearson, "10 books to read in winter 2020" January 2, 2020
Library Journal, review by Pam Kingsbury, January 1, 2020
The Rumpus, What to Read When 2020 Is Just Around the Corner, December 20, 2019
Forbes, Rachel Kramer Bussel, "The 10 Most Anticipated Books Of 2020, According To Independent Bookstores" December 9, 2019
Electric Literature, The 20 Most Anticipated Debuts of Early 2020, December 9, 2019
O, the Oprah Magazine, Michelle Hart, "31 LGBTQ Books That'll Change the Literary Landscape in 2020" December 5, 2019
Electric Literature "11 Highly Anticipated Queer Books Coming Out This Year," October 24, 2019
“This is a gorgeous, brilliant book that is all but guaranteed to resonate with queer folks, word nerds, and readers everywhere.”
Kirkus Reviews, Sept 29, 2019
“Shapland interweaves candid self-questioning and revealing personal stories with a nuanced portrait of a writer who confessed her loves were 'untouchable' and her feelings 'inarticulable.' A sensitive chronicle of a biographer's search for truth.”
“Shapland’s book is the kind of state-of-the-form reckoning that makes one wish there were more like it.”
Amazon.com Best Books of February: Biography and Memoir
Los Angeles Review of Books, Ellie Duke, "Rewriting McCullers," February 4, 2020
“At its core, Shapland’s book is about gaps — in stories, in language, in history, in ourselves — and how we attempt to fill them.”
Indy Week, Sarah Edwards, "How to Become Carson McCullers," February 4, 2020
The A.V. Club, Kelsey J. Waite, "An affecting new memoir frees Carson McCullers—and its writer—from the closet," February 3, 2020
Indiebound, IndieNext List, February 2020
Austin American Statesman, Joe Gross, "In My Autobiography of Carson McCullers, Jenn Shapland Sees Herself," January 30, 2020
Nashville Scene, Jane Marcellus, "Jenn Shapland’s Memoir Explores the Hidden Life of Carson McCullers" January 30, 2020
The A.V. Club, "5 New Books to Read in February" January 29, 2020
Lit Hub, "Lit Hub’s Most Anticipated Books of 2020" January 14, 2020
Autostraddle, Kate Gordon, "Jenn Shapland Names What Needs Naming in My Autobiography of Carson McCullers” January 7, 2020
“This book will change the way you think about the truth. … Shapland possesses the perfect storm of talents to push McCullers’s love life, and beautiful writing, into the light of this century during a moment when we need all the queer heroes we can get.”
Buzzfeed News, Arianna Rebolini and Tomi Obaro, "These Are Our Most Highly Anticipated Books Of 2020" January 7, 2020
Chicago Tribune, Laura Pearson, "10 books to read in winter 2020" January 2, 2020
Library Journal, review by Pam Kingsbury, January 1, 2020
The Rumpus, What to Read When 2020 Is Just Around the Corner, December 20, 2019
Forbes, Rachel Kramer Bussel, "The 10 Most Anticipated Books Of 2020, According To Independent Bookstores" December 9, 2019
Electric Literature, The 20 Most Anticipated Debuts of Early 2020, December 9, 2019
O, the Oprah Magazine, Michelle Hart, "31 LGBTQ Books That'll Change the Literary Landscape in 2020" December 5, 2019
Electric Literature "11 Highly Anticipated Queer Books Coming Out This Year," October 24, 2019
“This is a gorgeous, brilliant book that is all but guaranteed to resonate with queer folks, word nerds, and readers everywhere.”
Kirkus Reviews, Sept 29, 2019
“Shapland interweaves candid self-questioning and revealing personal stories with a nuanced portrait of a writer who confessed her loves were 'untouchable' and her feelings 'inarticulable.' A sensitive chronicle of a biographer's search for truth.”
