Substack roundtable on the meaning of 'literary'

Plus a best-written nonfiction work of the century

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COMING SOON:

—The best-written books of 2024.

—November is the busiest month for literary prizes, so we’ll be featuring the best-written books from their shortlists, and also from the century’s previous winners of these prizes. To avoid sending you too many posts, we’ll leave the recent releases until December.

IN TODAY’S ISSUE

— The video recording of my discussion with Eleanor Anstruther and Samuél Lopez-Barrantes of what we mean by the term ‘literary’; of the demise of popular modernism, and the slow cancellation of the future; of Eleanor’s disco moves; and of Alexis Wright’s absurdist masterwork Praiseworthy. Thanks to those of you who joined us.

—‘Depression is the flaw in love. To be creatures who love, we must be creatures who can despair at what we lose, and depression is the mechanism of that despair. When it comes, it degrades one’s self and ultimately eclipses the capacity to give …