The Spirit of Disruption: Landmark Work from The Normal School

by Steven Church

Twenty-eight landmark essays from The Normal School magazine — the standard-bearer for creative nonfiction today. From a diverse list of authors, startling reflections on the exceptional and the everyday. An essential guide to the art of nonfiction with new commentary from each Joe Bonomo, Kristen Cosby, Timothy Denevi, Silas Hansen, Caitlin Horrocks, Todd W. Kaneko, Matthew Komatsu, Dickson Lam, EJ Levy, Patrick Madden, Brenda Miller/Julie Marie Wade, Thomas Mira Y Lopez, Ander Monson, Rick Moody, Dinty W. Moore, Jaclyn Moyer, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Jericho Parms, Elena Passarello, Lia Purpura, Colin Rafferty, David Shields, Margot Singer, Ana Maria Spagna, Natalie Vestin, Jerald Walker and Rachel Yoder

290 pages, Paperback

Published July 30, 2018

Reviews

[Colin · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK, fair warning--technically, I am one of the authors anthologized in this anthology (I received no payment for it, too, so this isn't a "thanks for the $" obligation). I just finished reading it in advance of using it in my undergraduate nonfiction class for the spring, and honestly, I feel like I should write Church and the other writers in here for letting me hang out with them. This is the most exciting anthology of the essay I've read since D'Agata's The Next American Essay fifteen years ago, and it provides an overview of the form's elasticity and joy. There's so much good stuff here that it'd be easier to point out the weak spots, which are nonexistent.

Anyway, off to write essays inspired by this book.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book for a class. Some of the essays were very good, but many did not appeal to me.