“Consistently entertaining… always poised, eloquent, and full of moments of tenderness.” — *Electric Literature*
The 52 micro-memoirs in genre-defying Heating & Cooling offer bright glimpses into a richly lived life, combining the compression of poetry with the truth-telling of nonfiction into one heartfelt, celebratory book. Alternatingly wistful and wry, ranging from childhood recollections to quirky cultural observations, these micro-memoirs build on one another to shape a life from unexpectedly illuminating moments.
**
Review
“ Heating and Cooling contains essays that are sometimes as short as 10 words . . . but add up to a surprisingly maximalist portrait of a life.”
- New York Times Book Review
“The micro-memoirs showcase a range of emotions that belies their brevity―taken from another standpoint, their brevity is what gives them power.”
- Wall Street Journal
“Beth Ann Fennelly’s genre-defying collection is so engaging and readable that you won’t even notice how much you’re learning about confronting the hardest challenge we all share: being human. Wise, irreverent, funny. . . . Everyone should read this book.”
- Atlanta Journal Constitution
“Consistently entertaining. . . poised, eloquent, and full of moments of tenderness.”
- Electric Literature
“Varying in length from a single sentence to several pages, the essays in [ Heating and Cooling ] are told with wry self-awareness and compassion.”
- Poets & Writers
“This collection will invite you into the delicate balance between the challenging, sometimes squalid, human condition and the beauty and sadness of the transcendent.”
- The Rumpus
“Fennelly packs a lot into each short piece, with some lighter in subject matter and others with a sudden punch-in-the-gut feel, weighted with existential exploration. . . . Potent despite their brevity.”
- Library Journal, starred
“[ Heating and Cooling ] offer[s] insight into . . . the overall human condition. . . . A sleek, delightful collection.”
- Kirkus
“Fennelly recounts episodes, events, or earned truths that, given her poignant reflection and graceful, often-funny telling, are sure to stop readers in their tracks. . . . This deceptively slim, convention-defying collection delivers unerringly generous rewards.”
- Booklist
“Imagine the hundred things you enjoy doing most in the world. Reading Beth Ann Fennelly’s Heating & Cooling is more fun than 95 of them.”
- Richard Russo
About the Author
Beth Ann Fennelly is the author of three poetry collections, Unmentionables, Tender Hooks, and Open House; two memoirs, Heating & Cooling and Great with Child; and a novel, The Tilted World, coauthored with her husband, Tom Franklin. She teaches at the University of Mississippi, and is also the state’s Poet Laureate. She lives in Oxford, Mississippi.
Description:
“Consistently entertaining… always poised, eloquent, and full of moments of tenderness.” — *Electric Literature*
The 52 micro-memoirs in genre-defying Heating & Cooling offer bright glimpses into a richly lived life, combining the compression of poetry with the truth-telling of nonfiction into one heartfelt, celebratory book. Alternatingly wistful and wry, ranging from childhood recollections to quirky cultural observations, these micro-memoirs build on one another to shape a life from unexpectedly illuminating moments. **
Review
“ Heating and Cooling contains essays that are sometimes as short as 10 words . . . but add up to a surprisingly maximalist portrait of a life.”
- New York Times Book Review
“The micro-memoirs showcase a range of emotions that belies their brevity―taken from another standpoint, their brevity is what gives them power.”
- Wall Street Journal
“Beth Ann Fennelly’s genre-defying collection is so engaging and readable that you won’t even notice how much you’re learning about confronting the hardest challenge we all share: being human. Wise, irreverent, funny. . . . Everyone should read this book.”
- Atlanta Journal Constitution
“Consistently entertaining. . . poised, eloquent, and full of moments of tenderness.”
- Electric Literature
“Varying in length from a single sentence to several pages, the essays in [ Heating and Cooling ] are told with wry self-awareness and compassion.”
- Poets & Writers
“This collection will invite you into the delicate balance between the challenging, sometimes squalid, human condition and the beauty and sadness of the transcendent.”
- The Rumpus
“Fennelly packs a lot into each short piece, with some lighter in subject matter and others with a sudden punch-in-the-gut feel, weighted with existential exploration. . . . Potent despite their brevity.”
- Library Journal, starred
“[ Heating and Cooling ] offer[s] insight into . . . the overall human condition. . . . A sleek, delightful collection.”
- Kirkus
“Fennelly recounts episodes, events, or earned truths that, given her poignant reflection and graceful, often-funny telling, are sure to stop readers in their tracks. . . . This deceptively slim, convention-defying collection delivers unerringly generous rewards.”
- Booklist
“Imagine the hundred things you enjoy doing most in the world. Reading Beth Ann Fennelly’s Heating & Cooling is more fun than 95 of them.”
- Richard Russo
About the Author
Beth Ann Fennelly is the author of three poetry collections, Unmentionables, Tender Hooks, and Open House; two memoirs, Heating & Cooling and Great with Child; and a novel, The Tilted World, coauthored with her husband, Tom Franklin. She teaches at the University of Mississippi, and is also the state’s Poet Laureate. She lives in Oxford, Mississippi.