Navigated to Kafka Prize winner

Kafka Prize winner

September 19
49 mins

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Episode Description

How do we engage with our guilt and grief? Author Claire Oshetsky explores these themes in Poor Deer, a novel that tells the story of a young girl whose best friend died mysteriously. The girl is growing up through the struggle of denial, sadness, confusion -- and eventually, a kind of confrontation with truth. It's a wildly inventive story that is both unique and relatable, and it earned Oshetsky the 2025 Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize from the University of Rochester. Oshetsky is visiting Rochester this week and is one of our guests.

In studio:

  • Claire Oshetsky, author of the award-winning Poor Deer
  • Chad W. Post, co-founder and publisher of Open Letter Books
  • Taylor Thomas, founder and owner of Archivist Books

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