I could wax enthusiastic about Levy’s writing, which is dreamy but diamond-sharp, prismatic, droll ... Levy does not do complication for complication’s sake. Each sentence precisely pins down a feeling, and with such economy ... Like all of us, Levy is far from coherent or fixed, and if the goal were to emerge from this book with a cohesive portrait of its author—a gestalt exercise unto itself—then the reader would fail. Certainly, this reader did, and happily so ... invites the reader into Levy’s literary imagination, and taken together, these facts and moments form a portrait, but it is far from photographic or even accurate.
Levy seeks to elevate those who helped pioneer significant movements under the heavy shadow of their male counterparts. Other entries examine the enduring inheritance of trauma, philosophical interpretations of culture, and the subconscious as a source of artistic inspiration. Many are rich with theory and scholarly references, which may limit the collection’s appeal beyond the literary sphere. Followers of French Existentialism and Levy’s unique wit and wisdom will be delighted.
Ultimately, The Position of Spoons is a celebration of the freedom to write, the freedom to create and flourish. As Levy reminds us ... This marvelous montage of essays and vignettes offers glimpses into the author's writing life and her engaging observations on French writers, automobiles, and female hysteria, among other topics.
Many of these disparate texts were originally published as commissioned introductions to novels or articles in journals, but together they acquire an electric energy as they begin to take the shape of an untethered, free-form autobiography ... An elegant, minimalist collage.
a dazzling collection of musings on art, aging, psychoanalysis, celebrity car crashes, and more ... Here, she gives space to everything else, with sublime results. Readers will be grateful for this generous peek inside a singular mind.