My Life at the Wheel

From an “American literary treasure” comes this humorous collection of essays on writing, friendship, family, and aging in an increasingly complex world(Publishers Weekly).

In this diverting anthology, National Book Award finalist Lynne Sharon Schwartz explores the connections and complications of a life rich with travel, fascinating people, and writing. Her body of work includes acclaimed novels, poetry, essays, memoirs, and English translations of Italian books. With biting wit, My Life at the Wheel dissects the trials of Schwartz’s recovery from major surgery; reveals her quest for hope and healing in the wake of the 9/11 attacks; comically muses on her fear of driving and her discovery of an “unknown” book by Henry James; and weaves colorful stories of hours spent arguing, drinking, and smoking with friends in a neighborhood bar in her native New York City. Her personal narratives range from riotous reflections on finding her calling to be an author, to the challenges of writing while raising children, and from a daughter struggling to understand her parents through adolescent eyes to an aging woman grappling with her own mortality. Relentlessly candid and often painfully funny, Schwartz fearlessly probes life’s most difficult truths, as she willingly confronts the complexities of growing older in a rapidly changing world.

Praise for the writing of Lynne Sharon Schwartz

“[Schwartz’s]insights are at once sympathetic and drenched with irony.” —The New York Times

“Reading Schwartz is like a pleasurable visit with a thoughtful and articulate friend.” —Kirkus Reviews

“I can think of no other contemporary writer who writes so well.” —Los Angeles Review of Books