Book Reviews

The Rich And Furious Inner Life Of 'The Woman Upstairs'

Claire Messud's The Woman Upstairs is about a lonely third-grade teacher who falls in love with the family of one of her students. Reviewer Lionel Shriver says the book so bursts with rage and desire that it barely squeezes between hard covers.

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Author Interviews

'The Woman Upstairs': A Saga Of Anger And Thwarted Ambition

In her new novel, Emperor's Children author Claire Messud explores the complicated relationship between two women: Nora, who longed to be an artist and have a family but failed, and the woman Nora befriends, who puts her art first and built a family as well.

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Book Reviews

'Woman Upstairs': Friendly On The Outside, Furious On The Inside

Claire Messud's new novel, The Woman Upstairs, delves into the inner life of the quiet, friendly — and secretly furious — woman upstairs, a frustrated artist named Nora who becomes obsessed with a glamorous immigrant family.

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Three Books...

Aftermath: 3 Tales Told In The Shadow Of Sept. 11

The impact of Sept. 11 sent shock waves through every aspect of modern American life, permeating and defining the culture of a generation. Granta editor John Freeman recommends three novels that examine the attacks of that day, and the lives that were forever altered.

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Best Fiction of 2006

Maureen Corrigan runs down her list of the year's best fiction, including a series of books set in post-Sept. 11 New York City, Richard Ford's last installment in the Frank Bascombe trilogy and fiction by two Alices.

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Author Interviews

Sept. 11 Plays a Role in Coming-of-Age Novel

The Emperor's Children is a new novel that chronicles the lives of three friends trying to make their mark in Manhattan in 2001 — and then come the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, and their lives are changed forever.

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Author Interviews

How Sept. 11 Invaded Her Novel

Claire Messud discusses her new novel, The Emperor's Children, set in New York City in 2001. Though her characters share in the Sept. 11 tragedy, the attack is not the focus of the book. Messud explains why.

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