Voluptuous Pleasure: The Truth about the Writing Life by Marianne Apostolides

Globe and Mail Top Non-Fiction Book of 2012

“It is the misfortune (but also perhaps the voluptuous pleasure) of language not to be able to authenticate itself… language is, by nature, fictional.” — Roland Barthes, Camera Lucida

Voluptuous Pleasure: The Truth about the Writing Life is a collection of non-fiction whose title states that non-fiction does not exist. These stories, by acclaimed author Marianne Apostolides, are sensuous and smart, ambiguous but incisive in their truths. Voluptuous Pleasure will take you inside brothels and bedrooms, kitchens and consciousness; it will seduce you along the limits of non-fiction, making you question the veracity of anything you’ve ever read—or even experienced.

Watch the BookThug Interview:

Reviews:

“Voluptuous Pleasure opens a window onto Marianne Apostolides’ house of unruly memories. These stories—memory-events that unfold through unflinching honesty—reveal that truth lies in the act of telling and—yes—the haunting pleasure of sharing it.” —Smaro Kamboureli, Canada Research Chair in Critical Studies in Canadian Literature, University of Guelph

“Subtle in its execution, clear in its vision, with a narrative that is both incisive and heartfelt …. Its unanswered questions, both real and imagined, will haunt long after its final page is turned.” —Tess Fragoulis

“In vivid language, Voluptuous Pleasure examines tensions between the exploration of personal memories and the construction of engaging narratives.” —Quill & Quire

“Apostolides is a kind of fan dancer among thematic imponderables: the realms of memory, longing, fear, loss, redemption …. Apostolides’ impassioned little book cranes its pliant neck to peer directly up the birth canal into the briny recesses where stories and writing are conceived.” —Charles Wilkins, The Globe and Mail

“Apostolides’ prose delights and takes pleasure in the slipperiness of language itself …. Blending the autobiographical with the archival, the fictional with the factual, Voluptuous Pleasure is a powerful call for language to be both questioned and celebrated, dispensed with and relied upon … a brilliantly-structured stream-of-consciousness novel… Fans of lyric prose will savour this intelligent, finely-crafted text.” —Lucia Lorenzi, Canadian Literature: A Quarterly of Criticism and Review

“Apostolides is fearless in revealing herself and masterful in ability.” —Corey Redekop, Shelf Monkey

“Voluptuous Pleasure takes the reader along for the ride as Apostolides investigates truth, memory, and writing it all down.” —All Lit Up 

Interviews: 

Self-Control: An Interview with Marianne Apostolides —Puritan Magazine

12 or 20 questions (second series) with Marianne Apostolides —rob mclennan’s blog

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Marianne Apostolides is the author of four books, including Swim (2009) and The Lucky Child (2010), which was long-listed for a ReLit Award. Apostolides is a recipient of the 2011 Chalmers Arts Fellowship. You can visit her at marianne.apostolides.com.