On graphic novels, Don DeLillo, and books as time capsules
‘I feel like my overachiever reading stuff started very young.’
As Lisa Ko follows the friendships of three women in her new novel, “Memory Piece,” the awardwinning author explores what life has been like for Asian-Americans in the past, present, and the future. Ko’s debut novel, “The Leavers,” was a finalist for the 2017 National Book Award in fiction, and her short stories have been featured in The Best American Short Stories. She has also published nonfiction and essays in The New York Times and The Believer. A native of Queens, N.Y., Ko lives in Brooklyn.
BOOKS: What are you reading?
KO: I’ve been reading two well done graphic novels, Mattie Lubchansky’s “Boys Weekend” and Jillian and Mariko Tamaki’s “Roaming.” “Boys Weekend” is a hilarious but moving story about a transfemme going on a bachelor’s weekend with college friends. “Roaming” has a very different vibe and is about friendship, being young, and going to New York City for the first time.
BOOKS: Are you a regular graphic novel reader?
KO: I’ve just come back to them after a number of years. I had forgotten how much I enjoy them. They make my brain engage in a different way. You are forced to slow down to see all these visual cues that the artist gives you that you might miss if you flipped through fast, which I tend to do with books.
BOOKS: What were you reading before the graphic novels?
KO: Before that, I went through an Annie Ernaux phase. I loved her novels “The Years” and “A Girl’s Story.” Then I reread Paula Fox’s “Desperate Characters.” Both Ernaux and Fox’s writing styles are compact, and there’s a beauty to that starkness. Then I read two hefty books, Paul Murray’s novel “The Bee Sting,” which is like 700 pages, and Safiya Sinclair’s memoir “How to Say Babylon.” Sinclair’s memoir is completely engrossing as a story of her development as a poet and her family’s history but there’s also her attention to language, which is a poet’s gift.
BOOKS: Was the Murray a hard read?
KO: It was not. I felt such joy in being able to read as compulsively as I wanted. Sometimes with books, such as the Ernauxs, I’m very aware that there’s a limited number of pages. I have to make myself slow down to savor it. With a 700page book, I could read as fast as I wanted and know there was more. I felt sad as I neared the end because it was such a joy to read.
BOOKS: Have you always been a voracious reader?
KO: I have. Growing up pre-internet, it was just a way to stay occupied. I read what was at the library and a lot of hand-me-downs from family friends who had kids older than me. I would always try to break the limit of books you could check out. I feel like my overachiever reading stuff started very young.
BOOKS: Do you read literary classics?
KO: I love Don DeLillo. I’ve returned to “White Noise” and “Underworld.” There’s something about his pace and style of his prose that is very soothing to me. It feels kind of nostalgic, and it reminds me of when I first read them.
BOOKS: How do you take care of your books?
KO: I’ll pull down an Alice Munro story collection I’ve had since college and there will be a number of things in it, like postcards and fliers that I used as a bookmark when I first read it. I’ll add something else so that the next time there will be a marker from 2024. It makes the book into a little time capsule.
BOOKS: Do you write in your books?
KO: I always mark the dates of when I first read a book on the front page. I don’t tend to write in the margins. That feels a little too academic. I prefer a paperback. I feel fine bending the spine and earmarking the pages. I feel like they are made to love.