A Report on the Afterlife of Culture

In A Report on the Afterlife of Culture, one of Canadas most provocative writers ranges across continents, centuries and linguistic traditions to examine how literary culture and our perception of history are changing as the world grows smaller. Weaving together daring literary criticism with front-line reporting on events such as the end of the Cold War in Poland, the plight of indigenous cultures in Mexico and Guatemala and African reactions to the G8 Summit, Henighan evokes a world where astonishing cultural riches flourish under siege from all-consuming commercialized uniformity. Whether illustrating in irreverent detail the reasons for the popularity of Ian McEwans Atonement, providing authoritative accounts of the work of writers such as Gabriel Garca Mrquez, Alice Munro, Haruki Murakami or Jos Saramago, writing with fresh insight on Cuban literary politics or the practice of literary translation, or intervening with forceful clarity in debates about the Giller Prize, book reviewing or Margaret Atwoods LongPen book-signing technology, Henighan is equally engaged with the word and the world. The work of a writer whose vision is simultaneously local and global, A Report on the Afterlife of Culture is entertaining and essential reading.

Stephen Henighan is the author of ten previous books, a columnist for Geist magazine, and a contributor to publications such as The Walrus and The Times Literary Supplement (London), where a number of these essays first appeared. Henighan has won a Potter Short Story Prize and a McNally-Robinson Fiction Prize and has been nominated for a Governor General's Award, a National Magazine Award and a Western Magazine Award. His popular following increases with each book.