Some of My Best Friends
CBC Books | | Posted: August 2, 2022 2:22 PM | Last Updated: August 2, 2022
Tajja Isen
A fearless and darkly comic essay collection about race, justice and the limits of good intentions from the editor in chief of Catapult.
In this stunning debut collection, award-winning voice actor and cultural critic Tajja Isen explores the absurdity of living in a world that has grown fluent in the language of social justice but doesn't always follow through.
These nine daring essays explore the sometimes troubling and often awkward nature of that discord. Some of My Best Friends takes on subjects including the cartoon industry's pivot away from color-blindcasting, the pursuit of diverse representation in the literary world, the law's refusal to see inequality, and the cozy fictions of nationalism. Throughout, Isen deftly examines the quick, cosmetic fixes society makes to address systemic problems and reveals the unexpected ways they can misfire.
In the spirit of Zadie Smith, Cathy Park Hong and Jia Tolentino, Isen interlaces cultural criticism with her lived experience to explore the gaps between what we say and what we do, what we do and what we value, and what we value and what we demand. (From Penguin Random House Canada)
In this stunning debut collection, award-winning voice actor and cultural critic Tajja Isen explores the absurdity of living in a world that has grown fluent in the language of social justice but doesn't always follow through.
These nine daring essays explore the sometimes troubling and often awkward nature of that discord. Some of My Best Friends takes on subjects including the cartoon industry's pivot away from color-blindcasting, the pursuit of diverse representation in the literary world, the law's refusal to see inequality, and the cozy fictions of nationalism. Throughout, Isen deftly examines the quick, cosmetic fixes society makes to address systemic problems and reveals the unexpected ways they can misfire.
In the spirit of Zadie Smith, Cathy Park Hong and Jia Tolentino, Isen interlaces cultural criticism with her lived experience to explore the gaps between what we say and what we do, what we do and what we value, and what we value and what we demand. (From Penguin Random House Canada)
Born in Toronto, Tajja Isen is an award-winning writer, editor and voice actor. Currently based in New York, Isen is the editor in chief of Catapult magazine. Some of My Best Friends is her debut book. She also co-edited the essay collections The World as We Knew It and The Walrus Book of True Crime.