The first book of Gregory Wolfe’s new literary imprint, Slant, is almost out. It’s satire by Erin McGraw, called, Better Food for a Better World
McGraw says that the part of her that loves Charles Dickens took pleasure in inventing outsized characters behaving in outrageous ways. “Once you’ve created an over-the-top world, you’ve got a fat contortionist and anything else you want.”
The publisher also has a much longer interview with McGraw.
It may have been Harold Bloom once who said, dismissing people’s accusations that Dickens is over-the-top: We’ve all known someone like a Dickens character.
I haven’t looked at Dickens the same way since.