- This event has passed.
Joseph Bathanti, Too Glorious to Even Long For on Certain Days
Join McIntyre’s Books for Joseph Bathanti, Too Glorious to Even Long For on Certain Days on Sat, Aug 30, 11am-12pm.
BOOK SUMMARY
Joseph Bathanti’s novella, “Too Glorious to Even Long for on Certain Days,” follows Fritz Sweeney through a pivotal summer in 1973, set against the backdrop of working-class Pittsburgh. Fritz grapples with an existential crisis triggered by his job at Acme Toy Warehouse, which he finds absurd and meaningless. This sense of absurdity is deepened by his fascination with Albert Camus’s philosophy, as seen in “The Myth of Sisyphus” and “The Stranger,” which he was introduced to during his first college literature class by an enigmatic Vietnam veteran professor. Further complicating Fritz’s life is his relationship with Claire Raffo, his mysterious girlfriend with whom he is precariously and hopelessly entangled. Throughout Too Glorious to Even Long for on Certain Days, Fritz confronts numerous moral crossroads, challenging his beliefs, understanding of existence, and his place in an ultimately unforgiving world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Joseph Bathanti is the former North Carolina Poet Laureate (2012-14); recipient of the North Carolina Award in Literature, the state’s highest civilian honor; and an inductee of the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame. Author of over twenty books, Bathanti is McFarlane Family Distinguished Professor of Interdisciplinary Education at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, and is the recipient of the Board of Governors Excellence in Teaching Award. He served as the 2016 Charles George VA Medical Center Writer-in-Residence in Asheville, NC, and is the co-founder of the Medical Center’s Creative Writing Program. His co-edited volume, The Anthology of Black Mountain College Poetry, from the University of North Carolina Press, was released in February 2025. His volume of poetry, Steady Daylight, from Louisiana State University Press, is forthcoming in 2026.
Fearrington Village is part of the Chatham County Craft Beverages & Country Inns Trail. See more events at Fearrington Village.