Advertisement
Books

The Light Room by Kate Zambreno review – a staggering breadth of knowledge

The celebrated author’s latest blurs the lines between memoir and essay

It is with gilded trumpets and celestial harps we should announce that finally (finally!) Kate Zambreno’s books are being published in the UK. A long-time cult literary figure, Zambreno has been your favourite writer’s favourite writer for years now.

One of the progenitors of that ever-controversial mode of writing known as autofiction, it was upon the publication of her now-classic nonfiction work Heroines in 2012 that Zambreno suddenly found her name mentioned in the same breath as Maggie Nelson, Eileen Myles and Sheila Heti.

Her latest book, The Light Room, which is subtitled On Art and Care was published in the US last year and is being put out by Corsair in the UK, marking the first time Zambreno has been published here. A perfect example of Zambreno’s trademark mix of memoir and essay, The Light Room focuses on those dark lockdown months when she entered into full isolation from society with her husband, her newborn baby and her young daughter.

Zambreno’s style is reminiscent of synapses snapping. At any point, she’ll observe an object or be reading a book and it’ll cause a domino effect in her thinking that leads us into an exploration of some aspect of art and culture. For example, at one point she observes a dinosaur calendar in a museum gift shop which causes her brain to snap to a similar calendar that she knows was used by the artist David Wojnarowicz in 1989, a few years before he lost his life to Aids

This begins a whole section whereby Wojnarowicz’s life and art are meditated upon, interspersed with observations of Zambreno’s current life situation, raising small children through a pandemic. Elsewhere,
Zambreno reflects on the life and work of the Italian writer Natalia Ginzburg whose work has seen a huge revival over the past few years.

These are but a few of the artists who Zambreno examines in The Light Room but it gives an impression of her style. She is one of those writers whose breadth of knowledge is almost staggering. Thank goodness she is open to sharing that with us.

Advertisement
Advertisement

The Light Room by Kate Zambreno is out now (Little, Brown, £22). You can buy it from The Big Issue shop on Bookshop.org, which helps to support The Big Issue and independent bookshops.

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us moreBig Issue exists to give homeless and marginalised people the opportunity to earn an income. To support our work buy a copy of the magazine or get the app from the App Store or Google Play.

Advertisement

Become a Big Issue member

3.8 million people in the UK live in extreme poverty. Turn your anger into action - become a Big Issue member and give us the power to take poverty to zero.

Recommended for you

Read All
Top 5 revolutionary books, chosen by historian and author Alice Hunt
Books

Top 5 revolutionary books, chosen by historian and author Alice Hunt

Every family has a secret. By uncovering mine, I liberated my grandmother's sorrowful story
Family secrets

Every family has a secret. By uncovering mine, I liberated my grandmother's sorrowful story

The Most by Jessica Anthony review – cracks just beneath the surface of an all-American family
Books

The Most by Jessica Anthony review – cracks just beneath the surface of an all-American family

Top 5 Desi books – chosen by Indi Deol, founder of British Asian magazine DESIblitz
Books

Top 5 Desi books – chosen by Indi Deol, founder of British Asian magazine DESIblitz

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue
4.

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue