Cultural Life: Madeline Miller, Novelist

Madeline Miller

Books

In the wake of Nora Ephron's death, I've been re-reading Heartburn. It's a novel based on the break-up of her second marriage, and it's been reminding me again how incredibly valuable she was as a voice. It's so funny, it's so sad, and incredibly incisive. I'm really enjoying thinking about her and her work. I've also been reading The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt, which is incredibly dark and funny.

Theatre

While I was in the UK I visited the rehearsal room for the upcoming Royal Shakespeare Company production of Troilus and Cressida, which opens at the beginning of August. I almost never get to watch any plays that are up for a Tony award, but I recently saw the updated Porgy and Bess, before it went to New York.

Visual Arts

I just went to the Musée d'Orsay, which I've wanted to visit for a long time. It is just as amazing as I'd hoped, with an incredible Degas exhibition.

Films

I recently watched Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious, which is a film I've never seen before. It reminds me of how much I love Hitchcock. I should really go back and watch them all! The visual brilliance of it, will always be amazing.

Madeline Miller's debut novel 'The Song of Achilles', winner of the 2012

Orange Prize for Fiction, is published by Bloomsbury