Hearts Afire YouTube Channel
Jean Thompson’s 7th collection of short stories, Hearts Afire, containing 10 new stories in a unique format.
Stories told aloud for those who listen with their eyes open. Hearts Afire is a new collection of literary short stories with visuals that complement the spoken word.
Written and read by Jean Thompson — National Book Award finalist and author of The Poet’s House, The Year We Left Home, and other acclaimed works.
Jean’s Hearts Afire YouTube channel launches with 5 stories. New stories will be released on a regular basis until the entire collection is available.
Jean Thompson is a novelist and short story writer, whose most recent novel is The Poet’s House (Algonquin). She has published 9 previous novels, including The Year We Left Home and Wide Blue Yonder, and 6 short story collections, including the National Book Award finalist Who Do You Love.
Thompson’s short fiction has been published in many magazines and journals, including The New Yorker, and been anthologized in The Best American Short Stories and Pushcart Prize. Her work has been praised by Elle Magazine as “bracing and wildly intelligent writing that explores the nature of love in all its hidden and manifest dimensions.”
Jean has been the recipient of Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, among other accolades, and taught creative writing at the University of Illinois–Champaign/ Urbana, Reed College, Northwestern University, and many other colleges and universities. She lives in Urbana, Illinois.
Praise for The Poet's House
“Jean Thompson’s wry, canny ninth novel [is] a tribute to the soul-saving value of art, a cri de coeur for women striving to make authentic lives, and a pipeline of guidance from the elders to the emerging. Thompson’s skills make us comfortable at once — and she is often very funny.”
— Joan Frank, San Francisco Chronicle
“[A] closely observed, droll, coming-of-age story…absorbing and emotionally resonant. The Poet’s House is a keeper.”
— Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air (NPR)
Listen to the review
“Jean Thompson’s wry, canny ninth novel [is] a tribute to the soul-saving value of art, a cri de coeur for women striving to make authentic lives, and a pipeline of guidance from the elders to the emerging. Thompson’s skills make us comfortable at once — and she is often very funny.”
— Joan Frank, San Francisco Chronicle
“[A] closely observed, droll, coming-of-age story…absorbing and emotionally resonant. The Poet’s House is a keeper.”
— Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air (NPR)
Listen to the review
Praise for The Poet's House
“Ever insightful, imaginative, compassionate, and funny, Thompson is a virtuoso of thorny interactions between wholly realized characters rife with contradictions. “
— Booklist (Starred Review)
“Thompson’s talents for immersive storytelling and sharp characters are on brilliant display. The author’s fans will savor this.”
— Publisher’s Weekly
“Ever insightful, imaginative, compassionate, and funny, Thompson is a virtuoso of thorny interactions between wholly realized characters rife with contradictions. “
— Booklist (Starred Review)
“Thompson’s talents for immersive storytelling and sharp characters are on brilliant display. The author’s fans will savor this.”
— Publisher’s Weekly
Why My New Book Is Not A Book
Publishers don’t want short story collections, so I decided to try something different. My new collection, Hearts Afire, needed a way to get out to the world. So I tried something different… video and YouTube.
A Virtual Visit to Prairie Lights
Last night Prairie Lights Bookstore in Iowa City sponsored me for a talk on “The Poet’s House”, in conversation with Elizabeth Weiss.
Chicago, Milwaukee, and Cake
I’m just back from two book events, one in Chicago at the Book Cellar, then on to Milwaukee at Boswell Books. Thanks to everyone who hosted and everyone who came out.
My Appearance on The Chicago Review of Books “Your Favorite Book” Podcast
It’s me being interviewed about James Agee’s A Death in the Family.