Private Novelist: Fiction

From the brilliant and incisive author of Mislaid—"a writer of extraordinary talent and range" (Jonathan Franzen) whose "capacity for inventions is immense"  (BookForum)—comes a new collection of her earliest work: two wildly funny novellas (Sailing Towards the Sunset by Avner Shats and European Story for Avner Shats) available in one compact volume.

Years ago, Nell Zink resolved to write a book for her friend, the Israeli novelist Avner Shats, that would mirror his remarkable style. Unable to read his Hebrew, she was forced to start from scratch. Now, this tongue-in-cheek homage is available to Nell’s growing readership for the first time, accompanied by a second dazzling and imaginative work that breathes—at Shats’s request—the perfumed air of the Old Europe and stars a figure very much like Shats.

Sailing Towards the Sunset by Avner Shats is Zink’s faux-translation of Shats’s 1998 novel Lashut El Hashkia ("Sailing Towards the Sunset"). It flows with a narrative spin only the singular Zink could pull off—including both authentic and fictional versions of characters from Shats’s life and work such as the author herself.

A fast-moving portrait of expat artists, authors, and academics on fellowships at the Villa Romana in Florence, European Story for Avner Shats centers on a trio of three indelible characters: an Israeli writer vaguely reminiscent of Shats, a German specialist in ancient lint, and a beautiful and fraudulent Russian performance artist.

Demonstrating the hallmarks of Zink’s unique talent, Private Novelist is an intimate look into this acclaimed novelist’s early work that will please her coterie of admirers and further burnish her lustrous reputation.

From the letters of Nell Zink: two wildly funny novellas now available for the first time.

Years ago, Nell Zink took on the challenge of reading a novel by a friend, the Hebrew-language writer Avner Shats. Unable to make sense of his work, she resolved to rewrite it for him from scratch. Now her tongue-in-cheek homage is available for the first time, accompanied by a dazzling and imaginative novella that ingeniously explores questions of art, language, and life.

“Sailing Toward the Sunset by Avner Shats” is Zink’s faux translation of Shats’ 1998 novel Lashut el Ha-Shkiah (Sailing Toward the Sunset). A romantic thriller involving a Mossad agent, a mythical silkie, and fictionalized versions of characters from Shats’ life, including the author herself, the work incorporates a number of previously unpublished short stories, plus Zink’s heartrending memoir “My Memoirs.”

A fast-moving portrait of expat artists, authors, and academics on fellowships at a villa in Florence, “European Story for Avner Shats” centers on a trio of indelible characters: a German specialist in ancient lint, an Israeli writer in an extended midlife crisis, and a beautiful and fraudulent Russian performance artist.

Demonstrating the hallmarks of Zink’s unique talent, Private Novelist is an intimate look into this acclaimed novelist’s early fiction—touching, sociable, and uproariously funny.

“Readers who enjoy smart, playful postmodernism will be glad that Private Novelist has finally been made public. Proof that experimental fiction can be fun.” - Kirkus Reviews