{"product_id":"little-labors-1","title":"Little Labors","description":"\u003cp\u003eSei Shonagon's \u003cem\u003ePillow Book\u003c\/em\u003e--a key inspiration for Rivka Galchen's new book--contains a list of \"Things That Make One Nervous.\" And wouldn't the blessed event top almost anyone's list?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eLittle Labors\u003c\/em\u003e is a slanted, enchanted literary miscellany. Varying in length from just a sentence or paragraph to a several-page story or essay, Galchen's puzzle pieces assemble into a shining, unpredictable, mordant picture of the ordinary-extraordinary nature of babies and literature. Anecdotal or analytic, each part opens up an odd and tender world of wonder. The 47 Ronin; the black magic of maternal love; babies morphing from pumas to chickens; the quasi-repellent concept of \"women writers\"; origami-ophilia in Oklahoma as a gateway drug to a lifelong obsession with Japan; discussions of favorite passages from the Heian masterpieces \u003cem\u003eGenji\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Pillow Book\u003c\/em\u003e; the frightening prevalence of orange as today's new chic color for baby gifts; Frankenstein as a sort of baby; babies gold mines; babies as tiny Godzillas ...\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLittle Labors-atomized and exploratory, conceptually byzantine and freshly forthright-delights.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"New Directions Publishing Corporation","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48833663041741,"sku":"9780811225588","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0557\/1529\/9533\/files\/imageloader_f587f19f-e600-4fb8-8071-b4e6598ab9f9.jpg?v=1790892745","url":"https:\/\/booksatmidnight.com\/products\/little-labors-1","provider":"Books At Midnight","version":"1.0","type":"link"}