Jennifer Egan and her book, Candy House | Credit: Pieter M. Van Hattem; Courtesy
Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Jennifer Egan’s work resides at an interesting intersection of popular culture and literature (with a capital L). They’re ambitious, serious works that also are very funny and accessible. “To read a writer who has such a rich public scope, as well as such a sense of the private world, is rare. There are very few I know who combined those two. I think that’s one reason she’s become one of the most popular and cherished, respected writers in the country,” said Pico Iyer, who will interview Egan (The Candy House, A Visit from the Goon Squad) on Sunday, November 6, at Campbell Hall.
Asked about her work, Egan said, “In the end, the only thing that matters to me is fun. I see myself as an entertainer, and I read fiction to escape into another world. My personal definition of ‘fun’ includes fresh language and ideas; without those things, a novel feels thin and won’t usually hold my interest as a reader. I get a lot of feedback to make sure my fiction is delivering the effects I want it to. One of those effects is often humor; I love to find the hilarity that results from following logical events to absurd extremes.”