Freeman's: Conclusions

by John Freeman

Featuring new work from Rebecca Makkai, Aleksandar Hemon, Rachel Khong, Louise Erdrich, and more, the tenth and final installment of the boundary-pushing literary journal Freeman’s, which explores all the ways of coming to an end

Over the course of ten years, Freeman’s has introduced the English-speaking world to countless writers of international import and acclaim, from Olga Tokarczuk to Valeria Luiselli, while also spotlighting brilliant writers working in English, from Tommy Orange to Tess Gunty. Now, in its last issue, this unique literary project ponders all the ways of reaching a fitting conclusion.

For Sayaka Murata, keeping up with the comings and goings of fashion and its changing emotional landscapes can mean being left behind, while in her poem “Amenorrhea,” Julia Alvarez experiences the end of a line as menstruation ceases. Yet sometimes an end is merely a beginning, as Barry Lopez meditates while walking through the snowy Oregonian landscapes. While Chinelo Okparanta’s story “Fatu” confronts the end of a relationship under the specter of new life, other writers look towards aging as an opportunity for rebirth, such as Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, who takes on the role of being her own elder, comforting herself in the ways that her grandmother used to. Finally, in his comic story “Everyone at Dinner Has a Max von Sydow Story,” Dave Eggers suggests that sometimes stories don’t have neat or clean endings—that sometimes the middle is enough.

With new writing from Sandra Cisneros, Colum McCann, Omar El Akkad, and Mieko Kawakami, Freeman’ Conclusions is a testament to the startling power of literature to conclude in a state of beauty, fear, and promise. 

283 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 10, 2023

About the author

Librarian note:
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John Freeman - English poet and essayist, 1880-1929

John Freeman - Book critic, Editor

John Freeman - British politician, diplomat, broadcaster, 1915-2014

Reviews

[Stan Georgiana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have previously read 3 volumes in this collection coordinated by John Freeman: Arrival (3 stars - book 1), Family (4 stars - book 2) and The future of new writing (3 stars - book 4). So I was excited to see a new volume called Conclusions and sad to find out that this will be the end of the series.

My favourite pieces of writing were:
I like all colours - a short story about an old lady and her mystery, with an open ending
Conclusions - an essay about trauma, climate change and global issues
Serene talking - a story about a woman who gets attached to a talking sex doll
The endlings - what would happen if we would have Neanderthal people among us in the present
and the absolute favourite: Transmogrification, a story about a woman coming back to work in a restaurant who starts noticing some weird behaviours and personalities in the next generation

While I enjoyed these stories, there are others that were just ok and most probably forgettable. I think the main idea of this collection was to have innovative, exciting writing, that will leave an impression on the reader, but I was pretty underwhelmed by this volume. The selection of the authors is not very daring, there are only a few translated works (which is fine, but not my ideal choice) and I cannot say that I noticed a common thread along the stories, they felt as different pieces, put in the same collection.

To conclude, this would be a 2 stars book for me, an OK one, didn't hate it, didn't love it.

Thanks, Grove Press and Netgalley for providing me with an e-book in exchange for a honest review.

[emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stunning collection, as usual. Freeman is such a brilliant literary curator, and I wish this ‘series’ would go on, and on, indefinitely. But I think this might be the last issue? Sayaka Murata’s + Mieko Kawakami’s short stories (‘exclusive’ to this publication, and as far as I know, cannot be found anywhere else (at least the English translations of them)) were so lush (wildly inaccurate term to be fair, as you must know if you’re already acquainted with their work — that both writers are extremely faithful to their ‘creepy’ but kind of ‘cute’ vibes). I would certainly give both 5*s but of course this is a mixed collection, so I took away a star as there are definitely some that I didn’t like enough. Honourable mentions : the ones by Holleran and Batasic.

[Fahad Al Suwaidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ugly cover. Fantastic end of the series. Big admirer of Freeman’s

[Nat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 4.5 rounded up to a 5!

This is the third of Freeman's collection I've read so far, the first being Home, and the second being Animals. I think this one, in particular, though not being as fun of a read as Animals, is the one that's left the most for me to think about of the three. There are some duds here and there, as to be expected of collections like these, but when it was good, it was really, really good.

Below are some of the pieces I enjoyed the most!

ON THE OCCASION OF OUR FOURTH DIVORCE ANNIVERSARY - A really nice look into how small differences chip their way into bigger problems, domesticity turns into boredom, and how things tend to just end.

MADISON SQUARE - Extremely nostalgic! A piece written with so much familiarity and love that I can almost imagine myself living in NY. It can be a little slow sometimes, but I suppose that's the point. Time is a funny thing.

PILLORY - Once you realise what's going to happen in this story, it really sucks you in.

CHE SI FUGGE - A beautiful, beautiful piece about a dying man's wish to go back to a home that no longer exists, all the way back in Palestine. I think about the phrase 'quant'è bella giovinezza che si fugge tuttavia' on the daily.

EMBROIDERY THREAD - Short but to the point. Kawakami writes the helplessness of the main character's situation profoundly well.

AMENORRHEA - If I had to pluck one poem out of this whole collection this would be it.

$ - This was a fun one! Not particularly striking or heavy in any sense, but the characters and dialogue are written so well that you kind of want to keep going, just to see where this guy's pride lands him.