Confessional, poetic, and performative, Among Friends & Lovers is a collection of hybrid essays that blend literary criticism, autobiography, and the imaginative “I” to reflect on the nature of love, language, friendship, and intimacy. The writings are confessional, poetic, and performative. They’re also love letters.

Discussed writers include Roland Barthes, Simone de Beauvoir, T.C. Boyle, Rebbecca Brown, Hélène Cixous, Joseph Conrad, Kathleen Fraser, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Clarice Lispector, Amanda Marbais, Bernadette Mayer, Robin Morrissey, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Gertrude Stein

+ Artist: Willard Wigan

+ Musicians: Blue Oyster Cult, The Four Tops, and Bruce Springsteen

+ Movies: The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, Et Dieu… créa la femme, and Eyes Wide Shut

Plus a whole lot of anxiety about love, intimacy, influence, and connection.