Hanya Yanagihara’s new novel, “To Paradise,” topped almost every list of the most anticipated books of 2022. That should come as no surprise. Her last novel, “A Little Life,” was an international bestseller and earned her a spot on the shortlist for the Man Booker Prize.
“To Paradise” is divided into three parts. The stories span 200 years, taking place in the late 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, but they are all set at the same townhouse adjacent to New York City’s Washington Square Park. The inhabitants of the book and the home change steadily over time, butthey struggle with similar questionsabout illness, class,and the enduring– but oftentimes false – promise of paradise.
The paradise those characters seek is an escape from the constraints of their family and society, but also the vision of America that has never been realized.
We talk to Hanya about her new novel and her work as a magazine editor.
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