Kate Zambreno

Freud was right--children are monsters. Or more frightening, they're actually tiny adults, polymorphous perverse little beings consumed by cruelty and pain and sensuality, the whole spectrum of human emotions. In his debut collection, "Short People," Joshua Furst, winner of the Nelson Algren Award for Fiction, examines childhood and its discontents with utmost empathy, refusing to sentimentalize the harrowing process of growing up. He treats his subjects seriously, from the born-again Christian struggling with puberty and his sin-filled body, to six-year-old best friends realizing all's not right with the world, to the wallflower high-school girl, to the unwanted children riled up that their estranged father's taking them to Red Lobster. So sad, and fucked up, and wonderful, a reminder of the chaos of youth that makes you relieved you never have to go through it again.

Joshua Furst reads from "Short People" on June 16 at 7:30pm. Barbara's, 1100 Lake Street, Oak Park, (708)848-9140.

(2003-06-11)

Also by Kate Zambreno

Starving artist
Caroline Knapp died last year at the age of 42 from lung cancer one month after her diagnosis, and it's difficult to read her posthumously published "Appetites: Why Women Want" without being poignantly aware that she was unconsciously near the end while so close to fully realizing herself.
(2003-06-04)

Clothes calls
Back in 1998, when the fashion designer resided in Los Angeles, camisoles she stitched together out of sari fabric brought back from a trip to Bali adorned the likes of Madonna and sold out at Fred Segal in four days. Then the Indonesian economy collapsed, crushing her nascent business just as it was taking off.
(2003-05-28)

Tip of the Week
Zines are stereotypically defined by their format--photocopied, stapled, idiosyncratic rants. But to Zine Guide's Brent Riztel, zines are a mindset.
(2003-05-07)

Author Visit
That's the joy of tiki, says James Teitelbaum, self-described "urban archeologist" and author of "Tiki Road Trip: A Guide to Tiki Culture in North America," as he sips on a goofily named beverage, "Planet of the Apes."
(2003-05-07)

Tip of the Week
(2003-04-30)

Author Visit
(2003-04-30)

Fine young culinary maestros
(2003-04-30)

Tip of the Week
(2003-04-22)

Baby, if you've ever wondered
(2003-04-22)

Tip of the Week
(2003-04-15)

Culture clash
(2003-04-15)

Tip of the Week
(2003-04-09)

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