REVIEWS
nb. magazine
“Lu Rile is a typical young artist searching for her big break in New York, and her complex decisions are at once deplorable and understandable; her moments of heartbreak remain sympathetic in a novel that threatens at any moment to turn the reader against her, and to create a world in which Lu is a villain. Lyon manages to keep these moral questions in play ambiguous enough that, despite the initial unlikability of her protagonist, the atmosphere she creates allows for a great deal of recognition.”
Out In Perth
“This stunningly seductive . . . examination of the power of addiction in a modern underworld is compulsive reading.”
Bridge Eight Press
REVIEW: Fruit of the Dead by Rachel Lyon
“By bringing the story to present day, and including both Cory’s narrative in third-person and Emer’s first-person perspective, Lyon creates new context, elevating the story into a most relevant dissection of girlhood, motherhood, and the cyclical history of violence against women. The importance of this reimagining of the Persephone myth is the way Lyon refocuses the lens through which we watch the maiden and her mother in their respective journeys.” —Tania Pabón Acosta
The Straits Times
Book review: Fruit Of The Dead uses Hades and Persephone to tackle addiction and exploitation
“Rachel Lyon’s relevant retelling of the myth of Hades and Persephone . . . recontextualises contemporary debates of the ethics of exploitative age-gap relationships and addictive painkillers into an age-old tale. With its gestures towards the fabulist and engagement with contemporary issues, this is one of the better Greek rewrites.”
nb Magazine
“As poignant as it is heart-breaking. . . a thoughtful and completely immersive novel that unflinchingly depicts, not only the dark side of capitalism and wealth, but also just how powerful and unbreakable the mother-daughter bond is.”
“This is far more than a clever retelling; it's also a thoroughly contemporary novel about the lure of narcotics, a powerful mother-daughter story about the lengths a mother will travel in order to save her most precious relationship, and a devastating indictment of power and risk imbalances between older, wealthy men and much younger women… It's perhaps too easy to call FRUIT OF THE DEAD hypnotic, given the effects of the drug that ensnares Cory. But it does pull readers out of time and immerse them in a story that feels both ages old and entirely new.”
The New York Times
A Modern-Day Persephone, Seduced by Opioids and Wealth
“Superb . . . refreshing . . . Lyon twists the tale just enough to needle our conceptions of coercion and desire.“
Novel 'Fruit of the Dead' is a contemporary reimagining of Persephone
"Lyon relates this often troubling story in gorgeous prose that’s so vivid and luminous it contrasts starkly with the darkness of the subject matter. Every sentence is a feast.”
Enthusiasms
Rena Mosteirin on “Fruit of the Dead” by Rachel Lyon
“Rachel Lyon creates a world of lush, poetic prose that feels at once modern and mythical, a kaleidoscope of sugar, sex, death, rape, and opioid addiction. . . . Lyon has crafted something new and wonderful from an ancient Greek myth. Read it.”
Booklist
“In lush, hallucinatory prose, Lyon narrates from the perspectives of both mother and daughter and evokes the classic myth without distracting readers from the striking contemporary setting and subject matter. Recommend to fans of Jesmyn Ward and Celeste Ng.”
Publishers Weekly
“Lyon (Self-Portrait with Boy) puts a modern twist on the myth of Persephone and Demeter in this irresistible narrative of a naive teenager and her protective mother… The story is brilliantly told through Cory’s and Emer’s alternating perspectives, as Lyon volleys from vibrant third-person narration focused on the teenager to her mother’s frantic first-person inner monologue. The result is an affecting, engrossing, and resonant tale about lost innocence and the enduring bond between a mother and daughter.” (starred review)
Fruit of the Dead
“Lyon’s skillful and luscious prose encourages empathy for both [protagonists]. . . . An affecting novel with touches of the fantastical, weaving explorations of power, youth, wealth, and familial love.” (starred review)
New York Times
Paperback Row
The New York Times Book Review
This artist’s bildungsroman . . . [wrestles] with complex questions about art-making, integrity and the ethics of ambition.
Les Inrockuptibles
“Autoportrait avec garçon”: un premier roman sous forme de récit d'initiation arty
(tr.) Self-Portrait With Boy… judiciously explores the links between morality and art, unravels the unthinkable paths of creation, and returns endlessly to this question so contemporary that it never ceases to occupy current events: Is it possible to separate the work from its author? But even more originally, it proposes a fascinating mirror between the trajectory of the artist and that of the politico-economic times in which she lives. The early 1990s saw the advent of neoliberalism, ambition, and individualism. The author draws a parallel between the ferocious greed of developers, ready to do anything to buy back artists' lofts, and the implacable opportunism of her determined heroine. Against the devouring gentrification of the city she opposes the Faustian mercantilism of the art market. At what price does one sell one's roof to the devil? she asks. What about her art? What about her soul?
So Many Damn Books
THE SMDB TOP 6 OF 2018:
The Friend by Sigrid Nunez
Self-Portrait with Boy by Rachel Lyon
We That Are Young by Preti Taneja
Heartbreaker by Claudia Dey
Neverworld Wake by Marisha Pessl
Any Man by Amber Tamblyn
THESE ARE A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE BOOKS
SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY: In this book, Rachel Lyon deftly explores moral gray areas, the sacrifices we make for art, and the price of a lie. I couldn’t tear myself away from its electrifying pages.
Electric Literature
Electric Lit’s 20 Best Novels of 2018
Luna Luna
BEST OF 2018: BEST FICTION BOOKS
Self-Portrait with Boy is a provocative commentary about the emotional dues that must be paid on the road to success, a powerful exploration of the complex terrain of female friendship, and a brilliant debut.
The Morning News
The 2019 Tournament of Books Long List
The Center for Fiction
Announcing the Long List for the 2018 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize
'Self-Portrait With Boy' Explores The Narcissistic Ambition That Fuels Success
Lyon's striking debut novel is called Self-Portrait with Boy, and though it looks backward to the end of an era in New York, it's not at all nostalgic. Think the tough tone of something like Rachel Kushner's New York/Italian art and politics novel, The Flamethrowers, or Olivia Laing's atmospheric nonfiction book about New York, The Lonely City.
“Portrait of Desperation”: Paige M. Ferro on Rachel Lyon’s Novel SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY
With her debut, Self-Portrait with Boy, Lyon has created something as unique, compelling, and exquisite as it is terrifying, and she is certainly being recognized for it.
The Unintended Moment: Rachel Lyon’s “Self-Portrait with Boy”
Self-Portrait with Boy is Rachel Lyon’s first book, and it is definitely far from being a lucky accident. Lyrically written, emotionally complicated, and surprising in many ways, it is hard to put down. It explores what constitutes success and fame and art. A single chance occurrence creates something out of nothing, and someone out of no one — but at an enormous expense. Rachel Lyon has given us much to think about.
Rachel Lyon on art and ambition in her debut novel, 'Self-Portrait With Boy'
“Self-Portrait With Boy" is a book about a woman faced with an impossible choice. The conflict is rich and thorny, raising questions about art and morality, love and betrayal, sacrifice and opportunism and the chance moments that can define a life. The novel wrestles with the nature of art but moves with the speed of a page-turner.
Electric Literature
How Does a Tragedy Become Art?
Capturing the most joyous, life-changing moments on camera is either a stroke of luck or the result of careful planning. The tragic instants that alter lives, however, are rarely images we want to frame; when they are caught on film, we’re left with certain questions: what to do with this tangible reminder of sadness? Who exactly owns the rights to this moment? The person, their family, the capturer?
In Self-Portrait With Boy, Rachel Lyon has written a powerful debut novel
Self-Portrait will get you thinking deeply about the challenges and complexities of creativity, morality, and making art as a woman.
How Ruthless Must Artists Be to Succeed?
Self-Portrait with Boy is about making it as an artist, but it’s also about desire: the seesawing balance of companionship and compromise. The pursuit of artistic greatness can be a lonely endeavor. It can also be a transcendent experience, and one of the most compelling aspects of the novel is Lu’s relentless hunger to make her dreams a reality.
Library Journal
STARRED REVIEW
Fabulously written, this spellbinding debut novel is a real page-turner. A powerful, brilliantly imagined story not easily forgotten; highly recommended.
STARRED REVIEW
In her gripping first novel, Lyon sympathetically portrays [her protagonist's] struggle to make an impossible decision and to deal with its repercussions.
Rachel Lyon’s novel ‘Self-Portrait with Boy’ explores where art meets exploitation
“Self-Portrait with Boy” is a confident first novel with a lot going for it. The moral dilemma Lyon sets up is explored with intelligence and grace
Staff Picks: Rachel Lyon, Radiohead, and Richard Pryor
The story is told in crisp, clicking, photographic prose and has the narrative momentum of a thriller, though the question isn’t what tragedy will befall the main character but what that character will do with a tragedy once it’s happened—and, most interestingly, happened to someone else.
Chicago Review of Books
THE MOST ANTICIPATED FICTION BOOKS OF 2018
A subtly elegiac yet fierce look at the blurred boundaries between life and art, loyalty and morality.
Artsy
A NEW NOVEL ASKS, WHAT IF YOUR ARTWORK EXPLOITS SOMEONE ELSE'S PAIN?
The novel is a rarity—a fully believable, fictional treatment of the art world, ready to share shelf space with the likes of Rachel Kushner’s The Flamethrowers, Siri Husvedt’s The Blazing World, Tama Janowitz’s Slaves of New York, and a few select others.
February Book Review: Self-Portrait with Boy by Rachel Lyon
With a vividly rendered setting, an emotionally turbulent narrative, and a spine-chilling dose of the paranormal, Self-Portrait with Boy has me dwelling on the dark side of creative expression and eager to see what Rachel Lyon produces next.
Thick with the atmospheric grime of early 1990s New York… [SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY] is a book about time: Lyon captures the end of an era.
Spring/Summer Bests | Debut Novels
A powerful, brilliantly imagined story not easily forgotten.
Publishers Weekly
Lyon’s candid, adroit debut follows a young artist’s disturbing journey to find an audience… written in raw, honest prose.
Conversations
On this episode of NEPM's The Fabulous 413, it's summer reading season! We speak with two local authors about their recent works: Rachel Lyon's re-imagining of the Persephone myth with "Fruit of the Dead," and astronaut Cady Coleman's memoir "Sharing Space."
Electric Literature
“This novel is a searing, imaginative retelling of Persephone, both memory and warning for any reader raised as a daughter, or parent to one. . . . Fruit of the Dead, pulsing with life, is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time.”
—Annie Liontas
LitHub
A Subterranean Kinship: Rachel Lyon and Leslie Jamison on Writing Separate But Related Books
A Conversation About Mythology, Motherhood, Literary Resonances, and More
So Many Damn Books
Rachel Lyon returns to talk about her new novel, Fruit of the Dead, and how it wasn’t always a Persephone myth retelling, she found that along the way. Plus, we get into the “generative fill” of reading, and I pontificate on dust mote fiction, inspired by the fetid summer heat within the pages of Tessa Hadley’s The Past. Read along!
Write Or Die
Rachel Lyon: On the Ancient Problems of Women, Writing Monstrous Men, and Her Novel ‘Fruit of the Dead’
Chicago Review of Books
“You Learn to Care for Your Characters Differently”: An Interview with Rachel Lyon on Fruit of the Dead
Epiphany Magazine
Library of America
“A myth is never fixed in time and place. Almost by definition, it evolves and adapts, breaks apart and reconfigures, retaining its familiar lineaments and explanatory power no matter when, where, and with whom it plays out. In Rachel Lyon’s sophomore novel, Fruit of the Dead, published this week by Scribner, the ancient story of Persephone’s abduction by Hades serves as the frame for an ultramodern tale of capture, consent, addiction, and complicated desire, set amid the roil of a twenty-first century capitalism gone off the rails.”
In Process With: Rachel Lyon
“Today’s In Process With… brings us to the desk(s) of the writer Rachel Lyon. Rachel and I met when we figured out our first books had the same launch date—which was actually yesterday; happy 6 year book anniversary to us! That book was SELF PORTRAIT WITH BOY, which was a finalist for the Center for Fiction's 2018 First Novel Prize, and which I recommend to anyone who wants a book about artists, grief, chance, gentrifying Brooklyn in the early 90s, and the essential question of responsibility: to self, art, community.” —Danielle Lazarin
Maximum Shelf, 11/28/23
“Rachel Lyon's second novel, Fruit of the Dead, is a lushly detailed, mesmerizing retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone, set in modern times. This version retains original themes and subject matter, including power struggles, sexual assault, and cycles of growth and decay, while adding fresh commentary on addiction, class dynamics, and late-stage capitalism. Readers absolutely do not need familiarity with the myth to enjoy the novel, but such familiarity will be amply rewarded by Lyon's subtle, clever references. The result is smart, disturbing, rich with opulent detail, and harrowing (there are several scenes of sexual assault). . . . This compulsively enthralling novel recasts an ancient myth in familiar times to great effect. Disquieting, propulsive, wise, and frightening, Lyon's imaginative second novel is hard to put down and harder to forget.” —Julia Kastner
The Ashfield News
“Finding Promise in the Premise: A Conversation with Rachel Lyon”
Writerly Bites
Host Blair Hurley chats with Rachel about finding the body in fiction.
Episode two of The Antibody Reading Series, a weekly reading and Q&A hosted by Brian Gresko. Tonight’s guests are novelists Andrew Altschul (THE GRINGA), Rachel Lyon (SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY) and Michael Seidlinger (DREAMS OF BEING).
One Story
Q&A with Rachel Lyon by Patrick Ryan
“You’ll Know When It’s Time” is about much more than a cat and a cat-owner. It’s about marriage, infidelity, parenting, aging, and so many other things. Rachel Lyon is a powerhouse of talent, and our new issue stands as a testament to that. We hope you enjoy Ida and Denny’s last hurrah as much as we did.
LitHub / LIC Reading Series
LIC Reading Series Podcast: Jared Harél, Morgan Jerkins, and Rachel Lyon: Onstage Conversations From the LIC Reading Series
Where is all of the literary love for Queens? It’s right here at LIC Reading Series. This week, the podcast features the reading and panel discussion from the LIC Reading Series event on March 13, 2018, with Jared Harél (Go Because I Love You), Morgan Jerkins (This Will Be My Undoing), and Rachel Lyon (Self-Portrait With Boy). Check back Thursday for the discussion!
Ask the Editor: An Interview with Rachel Lyon, Editor in Chief of Epiphany
Rachel Lyon has done something many aspire to do: Made a career for herself as both a successful author and editor. Her debut novel, Self-Portrait With Boy, met with critical success, and is currently being developed as a feature film. Meanwhile, Lyon is the Editor-in-Chief at literary journal Epiphany. As part of our Ask the Editor series, Lyon spoke with MFA non-fiction candidate Elena Sheppard about her career path, what it really means to be an Editor-in-Chief, and what everyone who aspires to this kind of role really needs in their arsenal.
Episode 40: Slushie Pile
Welcome to the 40th episode of the Dead Rabbits podcast. Today we’ve got the lovely ladies of the Ditmas Lit reading series, Rachel Lyon and Sarah Bridgins. They give two of the best readings we’ve yet to have on our podcast, period. What could possibly be better?
Keep the Channel Open
EPISODE 79: RACHEL LYON
Rachel Lyon is a writer based in Brooklyn, NY. Rachel’s debut novel Self-Portrait With Boy caught my attention for its complex depiction of a young artist in 1990’s Brooklyn, and the story has stuck with me in the months since I first read it. In our conversation, Rachel and I talked about the similarities between her novel and one of her earlier short stories, about the necessity of art in the contemporary world, and about the way her novel and its characters engage with questions of class. Then in the second segment, we talked about alcoholism and the role drinking plays in our culture.
Rachel Lyon reflects on her debut ‘Self-Portrait with Boy’
“I am a complete amateur at everything. I do yoga, but I fall down a lot. I cook, but only a very limited repertoire, mostly rice and beans and the occasional vegetable. I grow plants, but sometimes they die. I planted an avocado pit this year and the darn thing is growing into a tree! But right beside it, I’ve got this poor French lavender that’s been brown and brittle for years. I have no idea what’s wrong with it. I put it next to the avocado tree hoping maybe the avocado will inspire it, but I’m afraid it’s just become resentful.”
24PearlStreet
FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: RACHEL LYON
Rachel Lyon shares with us her tricks to overcoming writer’s block, the craft lessons that stuck with her, and the story of how she became a writer.
iHeartRadio
Sometimes there's that pivotal moment that can change everything in a person's life. Lu Riles has one of those moments in her quest to become an artist appreciated for her photographic works. But it comes at a cost, a very high cost. Rachel Lyon sheds light on this amazing story in "Self-Portrait With Boy."
An Interview with Rachel Lyon
The debut novelist talks art, life-altering decisions, and the reality of scrapping the first draft.
Episode 291: Self-Portrait With Boy Author Rachel Lyon
Author Rachel Lyon discusses her novel Self-Portrait With Boy with filmmaker Nick Kreiss.
English Kills Review
Let’s play a game. Let’s pretend you’re an aspiring photographer living close to the poverty line in a warehouse in Brooklyn. You work three jobs to support yourself, but no matter how hard you work, you never seem to make ends meet. Your high-ceilinged apartment is always infested with vermin, too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. You obsess over an artistic project that no one seems to care about. And then your dad needs a surgery he can’t afford. What would you sacrifice for a chance at fiscal and critical artistic success? Your pride? Your vision for your work? The relationships with those around you? Would you go as far as to trade yourself for success?
“Rachel Lyon and I first met when I took a workshop she was leading through Sackett Street Writers last year. She was a wonderful teacher and has been a sage guide to me as a young writer in New York. Her debut novel, Self-Portrait with Boy, has generated well-deserved buzz. Rachel and I met at a cafe in Crown Heights to discuss her novel, ghosts, the early 1990s, socio-economic class in art, and transcendence.”
LitHub
ON ENVY, UNSATISFIED DESIRE, AND NOT WAITING FOR PERMISSION
A RED INK ROUNDTABLE WITH MIN JIN LEE, JAMIE QUATRO, RACHEL LYON, AND MORE
Michigan Quarterly Review
I could not have predicted wanting to spend an entire book in the mind of Lu, but once introduced, I could barely be torn away to perform basic daily tasks like feeding myself, something Lu herself often ranks low on her list of priorities. What I mean to say is that her obsessions will quickly become yours, her ambition will intoxicate you, and her ferocious judgments of others and herself will feel as inevitable as if they were facts rather than personal opinions.
Otherppl with Brad Listi is a weekly podcast featuring in-depth interviews with today's leading writers. Rachel Lyon is this episode's guest. Her debut novel, Self-Portrait with Boy, is available now from Scribner.
The Amoral Artist
Rachel Lyon is at once a realist and a dreamer. The descriptions of 1990s Dumbo feel so tangible that you want to walk under the rain-slicked overpasses while listening to the Pixies’ Bossanova. But between Lyon’s brilliant flashes of realistic prose, snappy dialogue, and brisk plot, is the space of dreaming: Lu Rile’s (or is it Rachel Lyon’s?) philosophical fixations and the slight absurdism with which she sees her places, and others’ places, in the world.
Pigeon Pages Interview with Rachel Lyon
Fiction writers tweet beautifully. Poets, even better. But I wish Twitter would impose severe restrictions on the communication of politicians. Twitter is great for jokes, rants, flights of fancy, and simple observations, but it is simply not the proper platform for policy decisions.
BOMB
You Have to Get Their Attention: An Interview with Rachel Lyon by Ryan Spencer
At its core, this novel dissects the risks and sacrifices involved in coming to terms with this notion.
BoldTV
BOLD LIFE BOOKSTR: RACHEL LYON ON HER DEBUT NOVEL SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY
Buzzfeed
8 Inspiring Women Show Us Where They Get Their Most Creative Work Done
Writer Rachel Lyon likes to work among sentimental treasures that remind her of friends and family.
READY TO SEE MAGIC EVERYWHERE: TALKING WITH RACHEL LYON
Lyon’s sharply observed, character-driven fiction has appeared (or is forthcoming) in Electric Literature, Joyland, and The Iowa Review. She and I met at her apartment in Crown Heights to discuss artistic communities, the quotidian nature of the supernatural, and hyper-gentrification.
LitHub
5 WRITERS, 7 QUESTIONS, NO
WRONG ANSWERS
Welcome to the first edition of the Lit Hub Author Questionnaire, a monthly interview featuring seven questions for five authors with new books…
So Many Damn Books
Episode Eighty-Four: Rachel Lyon
“I Feel a Lot of Tenderness For Her”: Rachel Lyon on Writing “Self-Portrait with Boy”
Rachel Lyon’s debut novel Self-Portrait with Boy is a gorgeously written story about ambition and responsibility, set in the New York City art scene of the early 1990s. In advance of the book’s launch at Books Are Magic on February 5, I sat down with Lyon at Pel’s Pie in Brooklyn to discuss her novel, teaching and writing prompts.
other
Evergreen Review
An excerpt from Fruit of the Dead
Submissions are now open for our 2024 FLASH CONTEST judged by Rachel Lyon, author of Fruit of the Dead and Self Portrait with Boy.
LitHub
“There is a rich tradition of storytelling through which we get a look inside the lives of beautiful people on beautiful adventures, only to find that such beauty can be a mirage. It can even tip a person into madness. . . . Rachel Lyon’s Fruit of the Dead, Scarlett Thomas’s The Sleepwalkers, and Kimberly King Parsons’s We Were the Universe feature women losing something core to their identities—childhood, success, independence, sisterhood—and literally trying to escape that loss. They all land in beautiful places—a private island, a Greek honeymoon, a Montana river town—only to find their losses festering in strange and dangerous ways.”
Mashable
The 10 best books of 2024 so far, according to BookTok
Rachel Lyon's newest release retells the story of Persephone and Demeter, and BookTok was not disappointed.
"I think this is already my favorite release of 2024, even though it was the first book I read this year," Bossard said in a video about the book. "Perfect for fans of Emma Cline, Raven Leilani, Ottessa Moshfeg, and Megan Nolan."
New England Public Media
NEPM Book Club: 'Fruit of the Dead'
Join us for the NEPM Book Club — a quarterly virtual meet-up dedicated to bringing NEPM friends together to chat about new, diverse and interesting fiction. Our next meeting will be Thursday, July 18 at 7 p.m. We'll be reading "Fruit of the Dead" by Ashfield author Rachel Lyon!
Mashable
Which books are going to go TikTok famous this year
Bossard said Fruit of the Dead is "beautifully written," "completely consuming" and made her "stare... in awe."
British GQ
The best books of 2024 (so far)
“With vibrant language and a sharp, twisting plot, the novel explores coercion, agency and the ferocity of parental bonds, even through their flaws.”
Women Who Travel Book Club: 14 New Books to Add to Your Spring Reading List
“A page-turning story; one that interweaves teenage naivety, motherly intuition, and male privilege for a fast-moving tale that might call into question your own hard lines on topics like addiction, consent, and exploitation.”
LitHub
“Another juicy and irreverent use of classic sculpture, in a very striking composition.”
Oprah Daily
“Alternating between the perspective of mother and daughter, we can indulge in the full thrill of being young, reckless, and newly independent—and the full propulsive terror of being older and knowing better. Though Lyon pulls the bones of the story from ancient mythology, the book’s characters are intensely—at times achingly—human and its plot is urgently contemporary. A white-knuckled ride to hell and back.”
Town and Country
The 45 Must-Read Books of Spring 2024
“Lyon's storytelling . . . is a mesmerizing, fantastic retelling of an ancient myth.”
Bustle
This Spring’s 44 Most Anticipated Books
OurCulture
10 Books We’re Excited to Read in March 2024
People Magazine’s “Best Books To Read In March 2024”
[Lyon’s] unsettling novel about addiction, sex and desire, power dynamics and control is a reimagining of the myth of Persephone and Demeter, but still delightful for the myth-averse.
LitHub
Mythical Retellings, Mars Colonies, and Reincarnated Lovers: March’s Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books
4 New Highly Anticipated Sophomore Novels
NYLON
March 2024’s Must-Read Book Releases
PureWow
11 Books We Can’t Wait To Read in March
Deadline: Zoë Kravitz & Thomasin McKenzie To Lead Mona Fastvold’s Psychological Horror ‘Self-Portrait’ For Topic Studios
Cannes Market Hot Pic
Elle: The Best (and Most Anticipated) Fiction Books of 2024, So Far
“Rachel Lyon’s taken exceptional pains to reimagine the Persephone-and-Demeter myth for the modern day, casting a young camp counselor as Persephone; her distracted, high-achieving single mother as Demeter; and a pharmaceutical tycoon as the Hades who shuttles our Persephone to his private island. There, wonders—and risks—abound.”
LitHub’s Most Anticipated Books of 2024
“When an 18-year-old camp counselor gets swept away to an isolated island as the nanny for a shady pharma billionaire’s kids, her mother sets off to find her and bring her back. I’m a sucker for a good myth-retelling, especially when it doesn’t sweat the plot points too hard, and so I’m very excited for Lyon’s riff on Persephone & Demeter. Pharma billionaire Hades? Yes please.”
Lillith’s 21 Books We Want to Read in 2024
The Wigleaf Top 50 Very Short Fictions 2021
12 Books that Illuminate the Long Road to Becoming an Artist
Self-Portrait With Boy by Rachel Lyon
Our 20 Most Anticipated Books of 2024
“Fruit of the Dead promises to be a journey into a fever-dream where myth meets life in an unflinching examination of love and control, destruction and rebirth. Can March come any sooner?”
Featured Titles by Authors Who Participated in the One Story Summer Writers' Conference
The Bookseller
Scribner has pre-empted Fruit of the Dead by Rachel Lyon, a "beautifully crafted" reimagining of the Persephone myth.
Publishers Marketplace
FRUIT OF THE DEAD to be published by Scribner in spring 2024
Sackett Street Writers Workshop instructor and novelist Rachel Lyon walks viewers through Plot Roulette, a short-story-generating game that can be played in a group (similar to Bingo!) or alone. This game...
Caro’s City
For the Millennial Sibling: Self-Portrait with Boy
What’s “off limits” when it comes to making art? What must we sacrifice in the name of a masterpiece? You’ll get sucked in to this young 20s artist’s grappling as much as I did, I’m sure.
Variety
‘Self-Portrait With Boy’ in Development at Topic Studios
Topic Studios (“Leave No Trace”) has bought rights to Rachel Lyon’s debut novel and plans to develop the project as a feature film. Lyon will adapt her own novel. John Lyons (“Boogie Nights”), who recently signed a first-look deal with Topic Studios, has come on board to produce.
Broadway World
Topic Studios to Develop Film Adaptation of SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY
LifeHacker
It’s not light and fluffy, but Self-Portrait With Boy by Rachel Lyon will keep you turning the pages wherever you are this summer. …As you can see, I’m still thinking about it! Please, now you go think about it.
Briefly Noted
“There is nothing more pathetic than being the only person who believes in you,” says the protagonist of this début novel set in 1991, an aspiring photographer, broke and squatting in an unrenovated loft. Each day, she takes a self-portrait, and in the background of one she accidentally captures a nine-year-old boy falling to his death. She recognizes the photograph as a “masterpiece” that can propel her from poverty into the art world, but, after growing close to the boy’s grieving mother, she feels torn about capitalizing on the tragedy. Lyon frames the choice as one of self-definition: Must one be ruthless to be an artist?
“Other Rachel Lyons”
I am not the only person who gets a little rush out of receiving correspondence meant for other people with my name. It used to be that on the Verizon network you could text someone just by typing in a name; the author Leila Sales received thousands of texts over five years from strangers who’d addressed their text messages L-E-I-L-A. From 2007-2012 she documented them on an entertaining blog called, “The Leila Texts: Small Glimpses Into Strangers’ Lives, Courtesy of a Technological Glitch.”
O Magazine
10 TITLES TO PICK UP NOW
A Year In Reading: Adrienne Celt
Exciting and excellent: Rachel Lyon’s Self-Portrait with Boy, Danielle Lazarin’s collection Back Talk, R.O. Kwon’s The Incendiaries…
A Look at the 35 Over 35 List
Here are my top five picks from their list, followed by the full list:
Belletrist
Poets & Writers
“It’s going to be the first thing someone lays their eyes on before they read it.” Jaya Miceli, art director at Scribner, discusses her love of books covers and how the jacket designs were created for several popular novels, such as Rachel Lyon’s Self-Portrait With Boy and Jesmyn Ward’s Sing, Unburied Sing.
Upper East Side Magazine
The Luxury Constellation-Connecting New York City to the World
EXCERPT FROM SELF-PORTRAIT WITH BOY
Above us, caught in the branches of a tree like a manifestation of sunlight itself, was a golden scarf.
The Secret Library
EPISODE 100: SARAH SELECKY ON RADIANT SHIMMERING LIGHT AND MARY LAURA PHILPOTT'S SPRING MUST-READS
The book gets into questions of ambition and scruples and what we owe other people, like, what do you owe your friends? What do you owe your family? What do you owe your neighbors? What do you owe strangers? It's really a fine book. It snuck up on me and I was so glad it did. I couldn't put it down.
TOOLS TO TAKE FOR A SPIN: RACHEL LYON'S PLOT ROULETTE
Bustle
WHAT DOES A BOOK DESIGNER DO? JAYA MICELLI TAKES YOU BEHIND THE SCENES
"On a recent project for Self-Portrait with Boy by Rachel Lyon, I was emotionally compelled by the story of the female protagonist, an ambitious artist/photographer."
Apartment Therapy
9 Buzzed-About Authors You'll Want to Know Before Your Friends Do
Lyon's first novel takes a deep look at the difficult choices artists make around their most powerful works, while also exploring the complexities of a female friendship founded on loss.
Parnassus Books
New Season, New Books: 22 Staff-Picked Reads
CRAFT Literary
New books: week of February 5!
LitHub
The Best Reviewed Books of the Week
23 FOR 2018: A LITERARY PREVIEW FOR THE YEAR TO COME
We’re always up for novels dealing with artists and the ethical quandaries in which they find themselves, and Rachel Lyon’s debut falls squarely into that category. Throw in a detailed portrait of 1990s New York, and you have our full attention.
A selection of first sentences from new books, Feb. 4
MUST-READ FEBRUARY NEW RELEASES
A searing novel about the fraught relationship between intimacy and ambition.
You Oughta Read: 3 Debut Authors with Books out This January
I am always on the prowl for a great new book to read, and so it’s always a delight to find a book by first-timers—these little discoveries have been the silver lining of hope in my tunneled life.
18 Books That Should Be On Your Radar: February 2018
This debut novel shows what decisions an artist has to make when someone else’s tragedy will be shown to the world.
momadvice.com
February 2018 Must-Reads
Looking for a thriller with a plot that you probably have never considered? Self-Portrait With Boy is one of the most inventive plot concepts that I’ve read in a long time and absolutely captivated me.
Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Rachel Lyon, host of reading series Ditmas Lit, to launch debut novel at Books Are Magic
Vol. 1 Brooklyn
Vol.1 Brooklyn’s February 2018 Book Preview
There’s plenty to ponder in Rachel Lyon’s debut novel–from the way in which it evokes a particular neighborhood in a particular place in time to the way that it raises questions about art, tragedy, and exploitation. It’s a heady array of things to consider, deftly handled in fictional form.