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Red Love: The Story of an East German Family
I’m the bourgeois in our family. That’s chiefly because my parents were never bourgeois. When I was ten, my father walked round with his hair alternately dyed green or… More
Into the Go-Slow
Cars flew by. The boy and the man both waved. The man cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled something that got lost to the wind. Cars passed… More
Lily La Tigresse: A Melodrama
Sometimes I see less significant people too—girlfriends, high school teachers, men I once went to bed with. A few days ago, for example, I clearly saw Bruria Zimmel, who… More
Time Together
I was hardly proud that my son had somehow pulled off the incredible feat of impregnating some random girl while still tethered to me umbilically. Obviously. I mean, my… More
Music Doesn’t Want Me
For my work and worship I was rewarded / With secondhand inspirations / But they felt new to me, / Mysterious and timely. More
Writer and Human Rights Lawyer Muharrem Erbey Released After More Than Four Years in Pre-trial Detention
Upon his release, Muharrem Erbey thanked all PEN members who sent letters and postcards. "Those messages were tremendously important to me; they were what kept me going." More
PEN American Center Defies Chinese Government, Brings Ai Weiwei to New York
Nearly 200 writers, artists, and activists joined PEN American Center at Brooklyn Public Library last night to protest the Chinese government’s relentless efforts to undermine free expression. More
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