Writers & Company

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Kiese Laymon bears the weight of a difficult past in his powerful memoir, Heavy

The Mississippi writer talks to Eleanor Wachtel about growing up black in the Deep South, his gambling addiction, and his lifelong struggle with weight and body image.

Download Kiese Laymon bears the weight of a difficult past in his powerful memoir, Heavy
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Patti Smith on the immediacy of photography - and why she prefers Polaroids

The iconic American musician, writer and photographer talked to Eleanor Wachtel onstage in 2013 to celebrate the launch of her photo exhibit, Camera Solo.

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Alain Mabanckou on his profound connection to the Republic of the Congo

The celebrated Congolese-French writer joined Eleanor Wachtel onstage at the Vancouver Writers Festival in 2016.

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The enduring magic of The Little Prince: with Stacy Schiff, Mark Osborne and Éric Dupont

To celebrate the 75th anniversary of the beloved classic, three longtime fans join Eleanor Wachtel to discuss the book's universal appeal - and how it has touched their lives.

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Pat Barker on giving voice to the enslaved women of Homer's Iliad

The British novelist's new book is a powerful retelling of The Iliad, re-imagined from the point of view of Briseis, the 15-year-old queen who becomes Achilles' captured slave.

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Bernardo Bertolucci on the art and poetry of cinema

Eleanor Wachtel's 2001 conversation with the Oscar-winning Italian filmmaker, who died on Nov. 26, 2018, at the age of 77.

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Susan Orlean on loving libraries - and burning books

The bestselling American writer talked to Eleanor Wachtel about her new title The Library Book, which tells the story of the devastating fire at the Los Angeles Central Library - and the significance of Orlean's own childhood library.

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'My mother was a Communist informant.' András Forgách explores his family's secret past

The Hungarian writer's new book was inspired by a shocking revelation: Forgách's mother worked as an informant for Hungary's Communist regime, reporting on friends, family and even her own children. He joins Eleanor Wachtel on stage in Toronto.

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Elliot Ackerman on the scars that remain once the battle is over

After serving five tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, American author Elliot Ackerman uses fiction to explore the devastating impacts of war. He talks to Eleanor Wachtel about his powerful new novel, Waiting for Eden.

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Jeet Thayil on Baudelaire, drug addiction and his provocative novel, Narcopolis

The prize-winning Indian author spoke with Eleanor Wachtel in 2013 about Mumbai's opium dens, recovering from substance abuse and the beauty of poetry.

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Lee Child on Jack Reacher and his larger-than-life crime thriller series

The bestselling author spoke with Eleanor Wachtel about "Past Tense," the latest book in his phenomenally successful Jack Reacher series.

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Laurie Anderson on language, story and losing her archives to Hurricane Sandy

The iconic musician and artist talks to Eleanor Wachtel about her early life; the New York arts scene of the 1970s and '80s; meeting her husband, Lou Reed; and why losing everything in the floods of Hurricane Sandy came as a blessing in disguise.

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Poet Terrance Hayes examines race and politics in the age of Trump

In his powerful new collection, 'American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin,' Hayes responds to the election of Donald Trump and the tense social climate that has emerged in the U.S. The book is a finalist for the National Book Award for Poetry.

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Amitava Kumar on India, the U.S. and the indelible imprint of the immigrant experience

The journalist and novelist talked to Eleanor Wachtel about his new book 'Immigrant, Montana' which blends fiction and autobiography in a story about a young Indian man navigating college life in the United States.

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Kathryn Harrison on how her grandparents saved her from a broken childhood

From her painful relationship with her mother, to her sexual affair with her father, Kathryn Harrison's memoirs explore her troubled past with remarkable honesty and insight. Now her new book, On Sunset, tells the story of the unusual, well-travelled grandparents who raised her.

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Michael Winterbottom on the epic journey of his career in film

From the Toronto International Film Festival, Eleanor Wachtel speaks with the English director about the literary influences in his work, his attraction to road movies, and the making of his latest film, The Wedding Guest.

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Lawrence Osborne on re-imagining Philip Marlowe, Raymond Chandler's iconic sleuth

The English novelist and journalist talks to Eleanor Wachtel from his home in Bangkok about drawing inspiration from his nomadic lifestyle, and reinventing a literary icon in his new book, 'Only to Sleep: A Philip Marlowe Novel.'

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Teju Cole, Madeleine Thien and Dionne Brand on the places and spaces that inspire their writing

The celebrated writers joined Eleanor Wachtel on stage in Toronto for a discussion about the significance of location in literature.

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Zadie Smith on the ups and downs of female friendship in Swing Time

The award-winning author of White Teeth and On Beauty discusses friendship and rivalry in her most recent novel, and her lifelong attraction to musical films.

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Ruth Ozeki, Chris Abani and Tash Aw on faces and identity

Three writers were invited to contribute essays to a series called The Face - a look at how our faces do, and don't, reveal who we are. In 2016, they talked to Eleanor Wachtel about the deeply personal experience of writing those pieces.

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Roddy Doyle on telling the stories of Dublin's working class - with wit and sensibility

After winning the Man Booker Prize in 1993 for his novel Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha, the Irish writer talked to Eleanor Wachtel about tackling the topic of domestic violence in The Woman Who Walked Into Doors.

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Marlon James on writing himself into a new life

Marlon James won the Man Booker Prize in 2015, becoming the first Jamaican ever to receive the award. Here he talks to Eleanor Wachtel about his prize-winning novel, A Brief History of Seven Killings, and how writing has allowed him to create a new reality.

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'I don't believe in God, but I miss him.' Julian Barnes on why he puts his faith in stories

The celebrated English writer talked to Eleanor Wachtel in 2011, shortly after winning the Man Booker Prize for The Sense of an Ending.

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Pat Barker on how her grandfather's war wound inspired her WWI trilogy

The English novelist talked to Eleanor Wachtel in 1997 about her powerful 'Regeneration' trilogy, which explored the impact of trench warfare on soldiers in World War I. The trilogy's final novel, 'The Ghost Road,' won the 1995 Man Booker Prize.

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J. M. Coetzee on language, writing and the pleasure of reading

A rare conversation with the South African writer and Nobel Prize laureate. Coetzee talked to Eleanor Wachtel in 2000, soon after winning the Man Booker Prize for a second time, for his novel Disgrace.

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Aravind Adiga paints a relentlessly bleak, yet surprisingly comic picture of modern India

The Indian novelist stunned the literary world in 2008 when he won the Man Booker Prize for his very first novel, The White Tiger - a fiercely irreverent take on class and social injustice in modern India.

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