Great Man/Great Woman

The best book I read that came out this year was Kate Christensen’s The Great Man (Doubleday). Never having read Christensen’s previous works, novels (In the Drink, Jeremy Thrane, The Epicure’s Lament) or otherwise, I had no idea what a great artist this woman is. The author’s brush is sensitive to the touch, taste, smell, and sight of her characters and – cliché or not – brings them to life, a short life, at only around 300 pages. My favorite graphic novel of the year was the satirical Incredible Change-Bots (Top Shelf), good old Jeffrey Brown’s homage to/parody of Transformers. Words that come to mind: hilarious (!), genius (!), more than meets the eye (!). I’m currently plowing my way through Laura Warholic or, the Sexual Intellectual (Fantagraphics), a new novel by Alexander Theroux, released just at the tail end of 2007. This hunk (at nearly 900 pages) of satirical, anachronistic literature is shaping up to be a fine piece of writing and a good lesson in elaboration. Nine-hundred pages, remember? – Sofia Resnick

This article appears in 2007.

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A graduate of the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas, Kimberley has written about film, books, and pop culture for The Austin Chronicle since 2000. She was named Editor of the Chronicle in 2016; she previously served as the paper’s Managing Editor, Screens Editor, Books Editor, and proofreader. Her work has been awarded by the Association of Alternative Newsmedia for excellence in arts criticism, team reporting, and special section (Best of Austin). The Austin Alliance for Women...