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Optic Nerve by Maria Gainza (2019, Hardcover) NEW 1st
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Item specifics
- Condition
- Brand New: A new, unread, unused book in perfect condition with no missing or damaged pages. See all condition definitionsopens in a new window or tab
- ISBN
- 9781948226165
- Book Title
- Optic Nerve
- Publisher
- CATAPULT
- Item Length
- 8.5 in
- Publication Year
- 2019
- Format
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- Item Height
- 0.8 in
- Genre
- Fiction
- Topic
- Contemporary Women, Family Life, Literary, Biographical
- Item Weight
- 13 Oz
- Item Width
- 5.8 in
- Number of Pages
- 208 Pages
About this product
Product Identifiers
Publisher
CATAPULT
ISBN-10
1948226162
ISBN-13
9781948226165
eBay Product ID (ePID)
2315189719
Product Key Features
Book Title
Optic Nerve
Number of Pages
208 Pages
Language
English
Topic
Contemporary Women, Family Life, Literary, Biographical
Publication Year
2019
Genre
Fiction
Format
Hardcover
Dimensions
Item Height
0.8 in
Item Weight
13 Oz
Item Length
8.5 in
Item Width
5.8 in
Additional Product Features
Intended Audience
Trade
LCCN
2018-956396
Dewey Edition
23
Reviews
Advance Praise for Optic Nerve A Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Book of the Season A The Millions Most Anticipated Book of the Year A Big Other Most Anticipated Small Press Book of the Year "[A] profound inquiry into the place and function of art . . . The prose, in Thomas Bunstead''s translation, is restrained, funny, by turns (and at once) luminous and melancholy. I was put in mind of Rachel Cusk''s Faye trilogy, for this and for the anecdotal, allusive structure. The text moves fluently between art criticism and history, biography, anecdote, memory and the imagined past." -- Amy Sackville, The Guardian "Part criticism, part autofiction, part meditation on the act of seeing, [ Optic Nerve ] has much in common with the recent novels of Rachel Cusk, Ben Lerner and Olivia Laing. But it''s a highly original, piercingly beautiful work, a book you''ll want to savor . . . Optic Nerve is full of beautiful shocks. Like the critic John Berger, to whom she has been compared, Gainza writes about how we are never looking at just one thing: we are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves . . . Gainza is a writer who feels immediately important. I felt like a door had been kicked open in my brain." -- Johanna Thomas-Corr, The Guardian "Gainza''s phenomenal first work to be translated into English is a nimble yet momentous novel about the connection between one woman''s personal life and the art she observes . . . There are many pleasures in Gainza''s novel: its clever and dynamic structure, its many aperçus, and some of the very best writing about art around. With playfulness and startling psychological acuity, Gainza explores the spaces between others, art, and the self, and how what one sees and knows form the ineffable hodgepodge of the human soul. The result is a transcendent work." -- Publishers Weekly (starred and boxed review) "As our narrator navigates her life, the reader builds a picture of her marriage, friendships, estrangements, entanglements, family grudges, and desires that feels at once spontaneous and curated . . . Gainza writes a lingual picture of a woman who walks the echoing halls of Western cultural history with the intimate familiarity of an initiate while maintaining a sense of astonishment at the wonders of the everyday world . . . Erudite and unusual, Gainza''s voice evokes both John Berger and Silvina Ocampo even as she creates something wholly new." -- Kirkus Reviews " Optic Nerve is one of the best books I''ve read in years. How did María Gainza pull off something so risky when it never reads as anything less than delightful and engrossing? This is a book that loosens the restraints on literature and gives us a new way of seeing." -- Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida "I was reminded of Berger''s Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it''s so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial."-- Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." -- Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire "Exceptional." -- Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." -- Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story, Advance Praise for Optic Nerve A Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Book of the Season A The Millions Most Anticipated Book of the Year A Big Other Most Anticipated Small Press Book of the Year "[A] profound inquiry into the place and function of art . . . The prose, in Thomas Bunstead''s translation, is restrained, funny, by turns (and at once) luminous and melancholy. I was put in mind of Rachel Cusk''s Faye trilogy, for this and for the anecdotal, allusive structure. The text moves fluently between art criticism and history, biography, anecdote, memory and the imagined past." -- Amy Sackville, The Guardian "Part criticism, part autofiction, part meditation on the act of seeing, [ Optic Nerve ] has much in common with the recent novels of Rachel Cusk, Ben Lerner and Olivia Laing. But it''s a highly original, piercingly beautiful work, a book you''ll want to savor . . . Optic Nerve is full of beautiful shocks. Like the critic John Berger, to whom she has been compared, Gainza writes about how we are never looking at just one thing: we are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves . . . Gainza is a writer who feels immediately important. I felt like a door had been kicked open in my brain." -- Johanna Thomas-Corr, The Guardian "Gainza''s phenomenal first work to be translated into English is a nimble yet momentous novel about the connection between one woman''s personal life and the art she observes . . . There are many pleasures in Gainza''s novel: its clever and dynamic structure, its many aperçus, and some of the very best writing about art around. With playfulness and startling psychological acuity, Gainza explores the spaces between others, art, and the self, and how what one sees and knows form the ineffable hodgepodge of the human soul. The result is a transcendent work." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "As our narrator navigates her life, the reader builds a picture of her marriage, friendships, estrangements, entanglements, family grudges, and desires that feels at once spontaneous and curated . . . Gainza writes a lingual picture of a woman who walks the echoing halls of Western cultural history with the intimate familiarity of an initiate while maintaining a sense of astonishment at the wonders of the everyday world . . . Erudite and unusual, Gainza''s voice evokes both John Berger and Silvina Ocampo even as she creates something wholly new." -- Kirkus Reviews " Optic Nerve is one of the best books I''ve read in years. How did María Gainza pull off something so risky when it never reads as anything less than delightful and engrossing? This is a book that loosens the restraints on literature and gives us a new way of seeing." -- Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida "I was reminded of Berger''s Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it''s so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial."-- Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." -- Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire "Exceptional." -- Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." -- Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story, Advance Praise for Optic Nerve A The Millions Most Anticipated Book of the Year A Big Other Most Anticipated Small Press Book of the Year A Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Book of the Season "As our narrator navigates her life, the reader builds a picture of her marriage, friendships, estrangements, entanglements, family grudges, and desires that feels at once spontaneous and curated . . . Gainza writes a lingual picture of a woman who walks the echoing halls of Western cultural history with the intimate familiarity of an initiate while maintaining a sense of astonishment at the wonders of the everyday world . . . Erudite and unusual, Gainza's voice evokes both John Berger and Silvina Ocampo even as she creates something wholly new." -- Kirkus Reviews "Gainza's phenomenal first work to be translated into English is a nimble yet momentous novel about the connection between one woman's personal life and the art she observes . . . There are many pleasures in Gainza's novel: its clever and dynamic structure, its many aperçus, and some of the very best writing about art around. With playfulness and startling psychological acuity, Gainza explores the spaces between others, art, and the self, and how what one sees and knows form the ineffable hodgepodge of the human soul. The result is a transcendent work." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "I was reminded of Berger's Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it's so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial."-- Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." -- Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire " Optic Nerve is one of the best books I've read in years. How did María Gainza pull off something so risky when it never reads as anything less than delightful and engrossing? This is a book that loosens the restraints on literature and gives us a new way of seeing." -- Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida "Exceptional." -- Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." -- Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story, Advance Praise for Optic Nerve A The Millions Most Anticipated Book of the Year A Big Other Most Anticipated Small Press Book of the Year "As our narrator navigates her life, the reader builds a picture of her marriage, friendships, estrangements, entanglements, family grudges, and desires that feels at once spontaneous and curated . . . Gainza writes a lingual picture of a woman who walks the echoing halls of Western cultural history with the intimate familiarity of an initiate while maintaining a sense of astonishment at the wonders of the everyday world . . . Erudite and unusual, Gainza's voice evokes both John Berger and Silvina Ocampo even as she creates something wholly new." -- Kirkus Reviews "Gainza's phenomenal first work to be translated into English is a nimble yet momentous novel about the connection between one woman's personal life and the art she observes . . . There are many pleasures in Gainza's novel: its clever and dynamic structure, its many aperçus, and some of the very best writing about art around. With playfulness and startling psychological acuity, Gainza explores the spaces between others, art, and the self, and how what one sees and knows form the ineffable hodgepodge of the human soul. The result is a transcendent work." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "I was reminded of Berger's Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it's so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial."-- Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." -- Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire " Optic Nerve is one of the best books I've read in years. How did María Gainza pull off something so risky when it never reads as anything less than delightful and engrossing? This is a book that loosens the restraints on literature and gives us a new way of seeing." -- Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida "Exceptional." -- Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." -- Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story, Advance Praise for Optic Nerve "I was reminded of Berger's Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it's so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial." --Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." --Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire "Exceptional." --Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." --Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story, Advance Praise for Optic Nerve A The Millions Most Anticipated Book of the Year A Big Other Most Anticipated Small Press Book of the Year "I was reminded of Berger's Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it's so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial." -- Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." -- Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire "Exceptional." -- Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." -- Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story, Advance Praise for The Optic Nerve "I was reminded of Berger's Ways of Seeing , enfolded in tender and exuberant personal narratives--it's so sophisticated and fascinating, yet has a Calvino-esque light touch; all the textures and nuances come through without labor. Rigorous and mercurial." --Claire Louise-Bennett, author of Pond "In between autofiction and the microstories of artists, between literary meet-ups and the intimate chronicle of a family, its past and its misfortunes, this book is completely original, gorgeous, on occasions delicate, and other times brutal. And this woman-guide, who goes from Lampedusa to The Doors with crushing elegance, is unforgettable: she knows too much even though she declares herself scatterbrained and uncapable for modern life, even though she only feels alive in front of a secret painting, hiding somewhere in a South American museum." --Mariana Enríquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire "Exceptional." --Enrique Vila-Matas, author of Dublinesque "It is utterly unique how Gainza interweaves art into her book." --Cees Nooteboom, author of The Following Story
Dewey Decimal
863/.7
Synopsis
A Publishers Weekly Best Fiction Book of 2019 "In this delightful autofiction--the first book by Gainza, an Argentine art critic, to appear in English--a woman delivers pithy assessments of world-class painters along with glimpses of her life, braiding the two into an illuminating whole." -- The New York Times Book Review , Editors' Choice The narrator of Optic Nerve is an Argentinian woman whose obsession is art. The story of her life is the story of the paintings, and painters, who matter to her. Her intimate, digressive voice guides us through a gallery of moments that have touched her. In these pages, El Greco visits the Sistine Chapel and is appalled by Michelangelo's bodies. The mystery of Rothko's refusal to finish murals for the Seagram Building in New York is blended with the story of a hospital in which a prostitute walks the halls while the narrator's husband receives chemotherapy. Alfred de Dreux visits G ricault's workshop; Gustave Courbet's devilish seascapes incite viewers "to have sex, or to eat an apple"; Picasso organizes a cruel banquet in Rousseau's honor . . . All of these fascinating episodes in art history interact with the narrator's life in Buenos Aires--her family and work; her loves and losses; her infatuations and disappointments. The effect is of a character refracted by environment, composed by the canvases she studies. Seductive and capricious, Optic Nerve marks the English-language debut of a major Argentinian writer. It is a book that captures, like no other, the mysterious connections between a work of art and the person who perceives it., Blending fiction, personal essay, and art history, this debut is a "completely original book" (Mariana Enríquez), "reminiscent of John Berger's Ways of Seeing " (Claire-Louise Bennett), about an Argentinian woman obsessed with art., "In this delightful autofictionthe first book by Gainza, an Argentine art critic, to appear in Englisha woman delivers pithy assessments of world-class painters along with glimpses of her life, braiding the two into an illuminating whole." The New York Times Book Review , Notable Book of the Year and Editors' Choice The narrator of Optic Nerve is an Argentinian woman whose obsession is art. The story of her life is the story of the paintings, and painters, who matter to her. Her intimate, digressive voice guides us through a gallery of moments that have touched her. In these pages, El Greco visits the Sistine Chapel and is appalled by Michelangelo's bodies. The mystery of Rothko's refusal to finish murals for the Seagram Building in New York is blended with the story of a hospital in which a prostitute walks the halls while the narrator's husband receives chemotherapy. Alfred de Dreux visits Gericault's workshop; Gustave Courbet's devilish seascapes incite viewers "to have sex, or to eat an apple"; Picasso organizes a cruel banquet in Rousseau's honor . . . All of these fascinating episodes in art history interact with the narrator's life in Buenos Airesher family and work; her loves and losses; her infatuations and disappointments. The effect is of a character refracted by environment, composed by the canvases she studies. Seductive and capricious, Optic Nerve marks the English-language debut of a major Argentinian writer. It is a book that captures, like no other, the mysterious connections between a work of art and the person who perceives it.
LC Classification Number
PQ7798.417.A36N4713
Item description from the seller
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