fwriction

I have read this three times, and now I cannot wait to have my hands on Ben Greenman’s new book, Celebrity Chekhov. If you don’t enjoy this Story of the Day, I believe you need another cup o’ joe.

Here’s the intro, from Nerve:

The newest book by the New Yorker editor and author Ben Greenman, Celebrity Chekhov (Harper Perennial), takes the classic stories of Anton Chekhov and inserts contemporary American celebrities. In the published version of “A Classical Student,” Chekhov/Greenman’s protagonist is punished by a certain infamous motorcycle customizer. Here, in an alternate version exclusive to Nerve, an entirely different figure metes out rough justice. It should be stressed that every word of the story is fiction, including “and,” “the,” and “thrash.”

From “Stephen Colbert Whips Lindsay Lohan”:

“Dina shook her fist, and went weeping into the other room, where her houseguest was sitting. The houseguest, Stephen Colbert, was sitting at a table, reading Shakespeare, of all things. Stephen Colbert was a man of intelligence and education. He spoke through his nose, washed with a soap the smell of which made everyone in the house sneeze, and was forever on the look-out for women of refined education. He sang tenor.”

(from Flavorwire: Quiz: Match Chekhov’s Characters with Their Celebrity Counterparts)