ZZ Packer's 'Drinking Coffee Elsewhere': A Deep Dive with Nikesh Shukla

Introduction to 'Drinking Coffee Elsewhere'

• 📚 The podcast "Backlisted" discusses ZZ Packer's debut short story collection, "Drinking Coffee Elsewhere," originally published in 2003.
• 🎙️ Guests John Mitchinson and Andy Miller are joined by writer and editor Nikesh Shukla to explore the collection.
• 🇺🇸 Packer is an American writer, and the book was published by Riverhead in the US and Canongate in the UK.

Discussion of Lissa Evans's 'Old Baggage'

• 📖 Andy Miller highlights Lissa Evans's new novel, "Old Baggage," set in the 1920s.
• 🗳️ The novel explores the lives of militant suffragettes after they achieved the vote, questioning what comes next.
• ✍️ Miller praises Evans's clear prose and the novel's blend of humor and social resonance.

Review of Jade Sharma's 'Problems'

• 💥 John discusses Jade Sharma's debut novel, "Problems," a contemporary first-person narrative.
• 💊 The story follows Maya's descent into drug addiction, infidelity, and personal crisis.
• 😂 Despite the dark themes, the novel is noted for its sharp humor and strong narrative voice.

Deep Dive into ZZ Packer's 'Drinking Coffee Elsewhere'

• 🌟 The collection features eight short stories, praised for their rich language and evocative sense of place.
• 🧐 Readers are encouraged to revisit the stories due to their density and complexity, with many ending in unexpected ways.
• 🗣️ Packer is noted for her skillful navigation of silence and her ability to create stories that feel considered yet unconstrained.
• 🌍 The collection begins with a quote from Alex Haley, emphasizing the importance of writing from the perspective of those often overlooked in historical narratives.

Key Themes and Stories Explored

• 🧩 "Brownies" is highlighted for its exploration of racial divisions within a brownie troop, managing to be both funny and poignant.
• 👨‍👦 "The Ant of the Self" features a complex father-son relationship, with the narrator grappling with his father's behavior and his own issues.
• ✊ "Doris's Coming" is discussed as a powerful story set in 1961, intertwining the Civil Rights movement with the anticipation of the Rapture, showcasing Packer's masterful blend of cultural and historical elements.
• 🗣️ Packer's writing is characterized by its ability to immerse readers in the story without explicit didacticism, allowing for a nuanced understanding of her characters and their experiences.

Publishing and Writing Insights

• ⏳ The difficulty of publishing short story collections is discussed, with a noted shift towards greater acceptance in recent years.
• 🐌 The concept of "slow reading" is proposed as a way to engage more deeply with literature, particularly short stories and poetry.
• ✍️ The challenges of writing a novel are contrasted with short stories, with the process often involving extensive revision and a long-term commitment to a large body of work.
• 🎭 Packer's perspective on fiction and reality, particularly in the context of political discourse, is shared, emphasizing fiction's power to imagine realities that can be more accessible than actual events.