Alex Shakar
Encyclopedia
Alex Shakar is an American novelist and short story
author
. His novel The Savage Girl
was chosen as a New York Times Notable Book., was a Book Sense
76 Pick, and has been translated into six foreign languages.
. He graduated from Yale University
in 1990. He was a Michener Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin
, and earned his Ph.D. in English and Creative Writing from the University of Illinois at Chicago
. He currently lives in Chicago and teaches fiction writing as an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
.
’s Metamorphoses. The stories are innovative in style and structure, and thematically concerned with the isolation and longing for connection of modern city dwellers.
In 2001, Shakar’s first novel, The Savage Girl, was released to broad critical acclaim, garnering comparisons to Thomas Pynchon
, Don DeLillo
, Neal Stephenson
, George Orwell
, Aldous Huxley
, and Tom Wolfe
. Set in a fictional American metropolis, the story follows its protagonist, Ursula Van Urden, as she trains as a trendspotter, attempts to help her schizophrenic fashion model sister Ivy, and understand a homeless girl she calls the “savage girl,” who lives in a city park. Among the book’s themes are consumerism
and cultural schizophrenia.
Shakar's latest novel, Luminarium (Soho Press, 2011), has received high acclaim for its "penetrating look at the uneasy intersection of technology and spirituality" (Publishers Weekly
). Set primarily in New York City, Luminarium follows Fred Brounian, a former co-CEO of a software company devoted to creating Utopian virtual worlds, as he copes with circumstances beyond his control. As the fifth anniversary of 9/11 approaches, Fred finds himself moving back in with his parents after his company is seized by a military contracting conglomerate and his brother falls into a coma. He soon finds himself participating in a neurological study that promises "peak" experiences and a newfound spiritual outlook on life. As the study progresses, lines between subject and experimenter blur, and reality becomes increasingly unstable.
The Savage Girl. Harper Collins, 2001. ISBN-10: 0066209870 ISBN-13: 978-0066209876
City in Love. Fiction Collective 2, 1996. ISBN-10: 157366023X ISBN-13: 978-1573660235
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. His novel The Savage Girl
The Savage Girl (novel)
The Savage Girl is the first novel by American novelist Alex Shakar, released in 2001.-Plot summary:To Middle City, a fictional American metropolis built around a volcano, burnt-out art student Ursula Van Urden arrives to care for her younger sister Ivy, a fashion model who has recently suffered a...
was chosen as a New York Times Notable Book., was a Book Sense
Book Sense
Book Sense was a marketing and branding program of the American Booksellers Association, in which many independent bookstores across North America participated in order to better compete with the large book chains. Bookstores participating in the Book Sense program were expected to display the Book...
76 Pick, and has been translated into six foreign languages.
Biography
Shakar grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where he attended Stuyvesant High SchoolStuyvesant High School
Stuyvesant High School , commonly referred to as Stuy , is a New York City public high school that specializes in mathematics and science. The school opened in 1904 on Manhattan's East Side and moved to a new building in Battery Park City in 1992. Stuyvesant is noted for its strong academic...
. He graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1990. He was a Michener Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, and earned his Ph.D. in English and Creative Writing from the University of Illinois at Chicago
University of Illinois at Chicago
The University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, near the Chicago Loop...
. He currently lives in Chicago and teaches fiction writing as an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
.
Books
In 1996, Shakar won the National Fiction Competition and the Independent Presses Editors' "Pick of the Year" for his first collection of short stories, City in Love. Set in a mythical version of New York City, the book reimagines transformation myths of OvidOvid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
’s Metamorphoses. The stories are innovative in style and structure, and thematically concerned with the isolation and longing for connection of modern city dwellers.
In 2001, Shakar’s first novel, The Savage Girl, was released to broad critical acclaim, garnering comparisons to Thomas Pynchon
Thomas Pynchon
Thomas Ruggles Pynchon, Jr. is an American novelist. For his most praised novel, Gravity's Rainbow, Pynchon received the National Book Award, and is regularly cited as a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature...
, Don DeLillo
Don DeLillo
Don DeLillo is an American author, playwright, and occasional essayist whose work paints a detailed portrait of American life in the late 20th and early 21st centuries...
, Neal Stephenson
Neal Stephenson
Neal Town Stephenson is an American writer known for his works of speculative fiction.Difficult to categorize, his novels have been variously referred to as science fiction, historical fiction, cyberpunk, and postcyberpunk...
, George Orwell
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
, Aldous Huxley
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
, and Tom Wolfe
Tom Wolfe
Thomas Kennerly "Tom" Wolfe, Jr. is a best-selling American author and journalist. He is one of the founders of the New Journalism movement of the 1960s and 1970s.-Early life and education:...
. Set in a fictional American metropolis, the story follows its protagonist, Ursula Van Urden, as she trains as a trendspotter, attempts to help her schizophrenic fashion model sister Ivy, and understand a homeless girl she calls the “savage girl,” who lives in a city park. Among the book’s themes are consumerism
Consumerism
Consumerism is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and fostering of a desire to purchase goods and services in ever greater amounts. The term is often associated with criticisms of consumption starting with Thorstein Veblen...
and cultural schizophrenia.
Shakar's latest novel, Luminarium (Soho Press, 2011), has received high acclaim for its "penetrating look at the uneasy intersection of technology and spirituality" (Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
). Set primarily in New York City, Luminarium follows Fred Brounian, a former co-CEO of a software company devoted to creating Utopian virtual worlds, as he copes with circumstances beyond his control. As the fifth anniversary of 9/11 approaches, Fred finds himself moving back in with his parents after his company is seized by a military contracting conglomerate and his brother falls into a coma. He soon finds himself participating in a neurological study that promises "peak" experiences and a newfound spiritual outlook on life. As the study progresses, lines between subject and experimenter blur, and reality becomes increasingly unstable.
Publications by Alex Shakar
Luminarium. Soho Press, August 2011. ISBN-10: 1569479755 ISBN-13: 978-1569479759The Savage Girl. Harper Collins, 2001. ISBN-10: 0066209870 ISBN-13: 978-0066209876
City in Love. Fiction Collective 2, 1996. ISBN-10: 157366023X ISBN-13: 978-1573660235