How should a person be? : a novel from life

A raw, startling, genre-defying novel of friendship, sex, and love in the new millennium—a compulsive read that's like "spending a day with your new best friend" ( Bookforum ) Reeling from a failed marriage, Sheila, a twentysomething playwright, finds herself unsure of how to live and create. When Margaux, a talented painter and free spirit, and Israel, a sexy and depraved artist, enter her life, Sheila hopes that through close—sometimes too close—observation of her new friend, her new lover, and herself, she might regain her footing in art and life. Using transcribed conversations, real emails, plus heavy doses of fiction, the brilliant and always innovative Sheila Heti crafts a work that is part literary novel, part self-help manual, and part bawdy confessional. It's a totally shameless and dynamic exploration into the way we live now, which breathes fresh wisdom into the eternal questions: What is the sincerest way to love? What kind of person should you be? From Bookforum Heti truly has a startling voice all her own, and a fresh take on fiction and autobiography's overlap. Her mix of hyperreal detail, sweeping gestures from the realm of parable, and self-reflexive distortions leaves us wondering what's real and what's invented. — Johanna Fateman Review “Funny…odd, original, and nearly unclassifiable…Sheila Heti does know something about how many of us, right now, experience the world, and she has gotten that knowledge down on paper, in a form unlike any other novel I can think of.” – David Haglund, The New York Times Book Review “[Sheila Heti] has an appealing restlessness, a curiosity about new forms, and an attractive freedom from pretentiousness or cant… How Should a Person Be? offers a vital and funny picture of the excitements and longueurs of trying to be a young creator in a free, late-capitalist Western City…This talented writer may well have identified a central dialectic of twenty-first-century postmodern being.” – James Wood, The New Yorker “Brutally honest and stylistically inventive, cerebral and sexy, this †Reeling from a failed marriage, Sheila, a 20-something playwright, finds herself unsure of how to live & create. When Margaux, a talented painter & free spirit, & Israel, a sexy & depraved artist, enter her life, Sheila hopes that through close - sometimes too close - observation of her new friend, her new lover, & herself, she might regain her footing in art & life.“Funny...odd, original, & nearly unclassifiable...Sheila Heti does know something about how many of us, right now, experience the world, & she has gotten that knowledge down on paper, in a form unlike any other novel I can think of.” – David Haglund, NY Times Book ReviewUsing transcribed conversations, real emails, plus heavy doses of fiction, the brilliant & always innovative Sheila Heti crafts a work that is part literary novel, part self-help manual, & part bawdy confessional. It's a totally shameless & dynamic exploration into the way we live now, which breathes fresh wisdom into the eternal questions: What is the sincerest way to love? What kind of person should you be?“[Sheila Heti] has an appealing restlessness, a curiosity about new forms, & an attractive freedom from pretentiousness or cant...How Should a Person Be? offers a vital & funny picture of the excitements & longueurs of trying to be a young creator in a free, late-capitalist Western City...This talented writer may well have identified a central dialectic of 21st-century postmodern being.” - James Wood, New Yorker°°°A brilliant portrayal of finding a beautiful life by 1 of Canada's most exciting literary talents, now available as an Anansi Book Club edition featuring discussion questions. How Should a Person Be? is an unabashedly honest & hilarious tour through the unknowable pieces of one woman’s heart & mind, an irresistible torn-from-life book about friendship, art, sex, & love. It is a fearless exploration into the way we live now. Chosen as one of fifteen remarkable books by women that are shaping the way we read and write in the 21st century by the book critics of The New York Times "Funny...odd, original, and nearly unclassifiable...unlike any novel I can think of." -- David Haglund, The New York Times Book Review"Brutally honest and stylistically inventive, cerebral, and sexy." -- San Francisco ChronicleNamed a Book of the Year by The New York Times Book Review, The New Yorker, San Francisco Chronicle, Salon, Flavorpill, The New Republic, The New York Observer, The Huffington PostA raw, startling, genre-defying novel of friendship, sex, and love in the new millennium -- a compulsive read that's like "spending a day with your new best friend" (Bookforum)Reeling from a failed marriage, Sheila, a twentysomething playwright, finds herself unsure of how to live and create. When Margaux, a talented painter and free spirit, and Israel, a sexy and depraved artist, enter her life, Sheila hopes that through close -- sometimes too close -- observation of her new friend, her new lover, and herself, she might regain her footing in art and life.Using transcribed conversations, real emails, plus heavy doses of fiction, the brilliant and always innovative Sheila Heti crafts a work that is part literary novel, part self-help manual, and part bawdy confessional. It's a totally shameless and dynamic exploration into the way we live now, which breathes fresh wisdom into the eternal questions: What is the sincerest way to love? What kind of person should you be? "From the internationally acclaimed author of The Middle Stories and Ticknor comes a bold interrogation into the possibility of a beautiful life. How Should a Person Be? is a novel of many identities: an autobiography of the mind, a postmodern self-help book, and a fictionalized portrait of the artist as a young woman -- of two such artists, in fact. For reasons multiple and mysterious, Sheila finds herself in a quandary of self-doubt, questioning how a person should be in the world. Inspired by her friend Margaux, a painter, and her seemingly untortured ability to live and create, Sheila casts Margaux as material, embarking on a series of recordings in which nothing is too personal, too ugly, or too banal to be turned into art. Along the way, Sheila confronts a cast of painters who are equally blocked in an age in which the blow job is the ultimate art form. She begins questioning her desire to be Important, her quest to be both a leader and a pupil, and her unwillingness to sacrifice herself. Searching, uncompromising and yet mordantly funny, How Should a Person Be? is a brilliant portrait of art-making and friendship from the psychic underground of Canada's most fiercely original writer"--Provided by publisher

A brilliant portrayal of finding a beautiful life by one of Canada's most exciting literary talents, now available as an Anansi Book Club edition featuring discussion questions.

How Should a Person Be? is an unabashedly honest and hilarious tour through the unknowable pieces of one woman’s heart and mind, an irresistible torn-from-life book about friendship, art, sex, and love. Part literary novel, part self-help manual, and part racy confessional, it is a fearless exploration into the way we live now by one of the most highly inventive and thoughtful young writers working today.

A brilliant portrayal of finding a beautiful life by one of Canada's most exciting literary talents, now available as an Anansi Book Club edition featuring discussion questions. How Should a Person Be? is an unabashedly honest and hilarious tour through the unknowable pieces of one woman's heart and mind, an irresistible torn-from-life book about friendship, art, sex, and love. Part literary novel, part self-help manual, and part racy confessional, it is a fearless exploration into the way we live now by one of the most highly inventive and thoughtful young writers working today. Is It A Possible To Life A Beautiful Life? Astonished By Her Friend Margaux's Seemingly Untortured Ability To Live And To Paint, Sheila Begins To Treat Margaux And Their Circle Of Friends As Specimens In An Experiment That She Hopes Will Reveal The Answer. Sheila Heti. Facing a creative dilemma after a failed marriage, Sheila gathers inspiration from a depraved and free-spirited artist who becomes her lover, in a tale based on incidents from the author's true life.