Indelicacy (novel)

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Indelicacy
Indelicacy (novel).jpg
First edition
AuthorAmina Cain
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
PublisherFarrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date
February 11, 2020
ISBN9780374148379

Indelicacy is a 2020 novel by American writer Amina Cain. The novel follows the life of its narrator, Vitória, from shortly before her marriage until shortly after its dissolution.

Writing, composition, and background[]

The novel took Cain four years to write.[1] The novel is partially set in an unnamed museum and for inspiration, Cain visited the National Gallery in London and the Frick Collection in New York City.[1][2] The city in which the novel takes place also never receives a name,[3] and Cain has referred to it as a combination of Chicago, London, and "[...] some imagined place".[4]

Cain had several drafts for the novel, and has referred to earlier versions of the book as "terrible".[2]

Reception[]

Critical reception[]

Isabel Berwick, writing in a review for the Financial Times, referred to the novel as "[...] a strange, short, beguiling book."[5] This sentiment was echoed in The New Yorker, which called the book "sparse" and "elliptical".[3]

Berwick grouped Cain's work with that of Jenny Offill and Ottessa Moshfegh, calling their styles "modern flat".[5]

According to literary review aggregator Book Marks, the novel received mostly "Rave" and "Positive" reviews.[6]

Honors[]

The book was shortlisted for the 2020 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize.[7][8]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Cain, Kate Durbin interviews Amina (11 February 2020). "Eternal Present: An Interview with Amina Cain". Los Angeles Review of Books. Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  2. ^ a b Samatar, Sofia (12 March 2020). "The Space of Writing: A Conversation with Amina Cain". Music & Literature. Music & Literature. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Briefly Noted Book Reviews". The New Yorker. Condé Nast. 13 April 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  4. ^ Skwarna, Naomi (16 April 2020). "'A Trace of That Darker History': An Interview with Amina Cain". Hazlitt. Random House. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  5. ^ a b Berwick, Isabel (17 September 2020). "Indelicacy by Amina Cain — a strange, short, beguiling book". www.ft.com. The Financial Times. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  6. ^ "Indelicacy". Book Marks. Literary Hub. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  7. ^ Saka, Rasheeda (1 October 2020). "Here's the shortlist for the Center for Fiction's 2020 First Novel Prize". Literary Hub. Literary Hub. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  8. ^ "Indelicacy". Publishers Weekly. Publishers Weekly. 1 October 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
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