Maria Kuznetsova (novelist)

Maria Kuznetsova is a Ukrainian American novelist[1] with two book publications, both from Random House.[2]

Early life and education

Kuznetsova was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, and moved to the U.S. at five years old with her family.[3] After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, her family became Jewish refugees in Alabama.[3] Upon moving, she learned English, and eventually attended Duke University as an English major.[4] She went on to receive master's degrees in creative writing from University of California, Davis and the Iowa Writers' Workshop.[5] She serves as an assistant professor in the English department at Auburn University.[5]

Writing

Kuznetsova's debut novel Oksana, Behave! was published in 2019 by Random House.[1] A bildungsroman about a young Ukrainian immigrant woman divided into "episodes" for chapters, the book was reviewed positively by Emma Straub in the Wall Street Journal,[6] Anya Ulinich in the New York Times,[7] O, The Oprah Magazine,[8] Kirkus Reviews,[9] and Publishers Weekly.[10] Kuznetsova wrote in an essay for Catapult that many readers assumed that the book was autobiographical.[11] The book's launch also led to author interviews with a variety of publications including Electric Literature,[12] Bookforum,[13] The Gazette,[14] and the Chicago Review of Books.[15] Kuznetsova stated that the Soviet dissident Sergei Dovlatov was an influence on the work.[13]

Following the success of her first novel, Kuznetsova published her second, Something Unbelievable, less than two years later, in April 2021.[16] The book centers a grandmother in Ukraine and a granddaughter in the U.S. discussing their Jewish family's history through and after the Holocaust.[2] Rachel Khong wrote that the book argues that "the everyday matters—how unspectacular moments can transcend their confines, how miraculous the ordinary can be" in the New York Times.[17] In an interview with Sanjena Santhian for The Millions, she said the novel began as a short story that she wrote for a class with Ethan Canin at the Iowa Writers' Workshop.[18] This story's grandmother character was based on her grandmother in life, which she wrote about in an essay for Guernica.[19] In an interview for Bookforum, she said that the second novel was different because it required more historical research than the first.[20] It also received positive reviews from the Moscow Times,[21] Bustle,[22] Ploughshares,[23] and the A.V. Club.[24] However, it received a slew of negative reviews, including from Publishers Weekly, which wrote that the book "tediously unfolds" and "there’s not enough to hold readers' interest."[25]

Kuznetsova has also published books reviews and other nonfiction, including essays in Slate about her experience having a miscarriage[26] and postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter.[27]

References

  1. "Maria Kuznetsova". Electric Literature. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  2. Khong, Rachel (2021-04-13). "And Now, a Case for the Ordinary". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  3. "Maria Kuznetsova: "My Painting of Kyiv"". The Yale Review. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  4. Goff, Lydia (7 December 2019). "Writing through Rejection: Maria Kuznetsova's Advice for Young Writers". Duke University Department of English. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  5. "Maria Kuznetsova". Auburn University College of Liberal Arts. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  6. Gamerman, Ellen (2019-04-03). "The 10 Books You'll Want to Read This Spring". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  7. Ulinich, Anya (2019-05-02). "Two Novels About Young Soviet Transplants in America". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  8. Cain, Hamilton; Haber, Leigh; Hart, Michelle (2019-03-13). "Happy Spring! 10 Fantastic New Books to Read in March". Oprah Daily. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  9. "OKSANA, BEHAVE!". Kirkus Reviews.
  10. "Fiction Book Review: Oksana, Behave! by Maria Kuznetsova". Publishers Weekly. 2019-03-19. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  11. "On the Dangers of Autobiographical Writing | Maria Kuznetsova". Catapult. 2020-04-15. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  12. "Maria Kuznetsova Thinks You Should Go Ahead and Be Weird". Electric Literature. 2019-06-13. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  13. "Bookforum talks with Maria Kuznetsova". Bookforum. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  14. "Author profile | Maria Kuznetsova Writers' Workshop grad's debut novel explores misbehaving with a dose of humor". The Gazette. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  15. "The Goodness of Being Bad". Chicago Review of Books. 2020-02-14. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  16. "Something Unbelievable by Maria Kuznetsova: 9780525511908". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  17. Khong, Rachel (2021-04-13). "And Now, a Case for the Ordinary". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  18. "Immigrants Behaving Badly: Maria Kuznetsova and Sanjena Sathian in Conversation". The Millions. 2021-04-09. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  19. Kuznetsova, Maria (2019-03-19). "The Grandmother Character". Guernica. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  20. "Bookforum talks with Maria Kuznetsova about her new novel of family lore and motherhood". Bookforum. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  21. Crescente, Joe (2021-04-11). "Maria Kuznetsova's Second Novel is 'Something Unbelievable'". Moscow Times. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  22. "Looking For A New Book? Curl Up With One Of These Must-Read New Releases". Bustle. 31 March 2021. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  23. "The Tradition of Storytelling in Something Unbelievable". Ploughshares. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  24. "5 new books to read in April". The A.V. Club. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  25. "Fiction Book Review: Something Unbelievable by Maria Kuznetsova". Publishers Weekly. 2021-04-13. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  26. Kuznetsova, Maria (2019-10-10). "My Ectopic Summer". Slate. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  27. Kuznetsova, Maria (2020-08-19). "The Unimaginable Hell of Postpartum Insomnia". Slate. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.