‘A lot of people openly loathe the arts’: Frances Pavletich’s books confessional

The useful part

Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits of Aotearoa writers, and guests. I also love the way she writes her women – they are selfish and spiteful and terrifying. It blends illustration with memoir and research to create a story of the modern Arab world.

How it works

• There is a humanity to her work that feels unparalleled.
• Her narrative approach is both very personal as well as a collective history – it is hard to pin down exactly, but the book is almost a cross between a graphic novel and a travelogue.
• by Kaveh Akbar, Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti, 100 Boyfriends by Brontez Purnell, Bluets by Maggie Nelson and King Kong Theory by Virginie Despentes.
• The book I want to be buried with I told my husband I didn't want to be buried with a book and he told me to stop being boring.
• An ex recommended it to me and it is still one of the funniest books I have ever read.

What to take from it

Unfortunately Kennedy Toole died by suicide before it was published so would nev...

Details worth keeping

This week: author of That Was Not My Intention, Frances Pavletich. The book I wish I'd written Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I think we focus too much on morality when we judge characters.