In Her Latest Novel, Lionel Shriver Probes Profound End-Of-Life Issues

Tom's guest is the journalist and best-selling author Lionel Shriver. Born in North Carolina, she divides her time today between London and New York. A regular columnist for the Spectator in Britain and Harper’s Magazine in the United States, Ms. Shriver has also written commentary for the New York Times, The Guardian, and The Wall Street Journal, among other publications. She has written more than a dozen novels as well, including We Have to Talk About Kevin, which sold more than 2 million copies, was made into a movie, and won the Orange Prize. She was also a finalist for the National Book Award in 2010 with her novel, So Much for That, a contemplation about the American health care system. Lionel Shriver's latest book is a deeply compelling and fascinating novel that is a rule-busting barrage of iconoclastic brilliance. It’s called Should We Stay or Should We Go. It imagines a parade of possible outcomes when a healthy couple in their early 50s decides that when they reach their 80s, they will commit suicide. The story unfolds in the context of, among other events, a world-wide recession, Brexit and COVID-19. Shriver asks penetrating questions about what the metrics of a well-lived life could or should be, and what responsibility, if any, one has to others and to oneself if those metrics begin to show inescapable diminishment. Lionel Shriver joined Tom on Zoom from her home in Brooklyn, New York.Their conversation was pre-recorded, so we aren’t taking any calls or comments today. ___________________________________________ This book imagines many different outcomes after these fictional characters have decided to commit suicide.If you or someone you know is considering suicide, phone the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and talk to somebody about it. Call 800-273-8255.Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.