Jess Arndt

INTRODUCED BY

Maggie Nelson author of nine books, including The Argonauts, published by Graywolf Press in 2015.

MANY people, myself included, have been eagerly awaiting a first book from Jess Arndt for some time, and now here is Large Animals, a wicked sliver of a collection that both exceeds expectations and provides innumerable deep pleasures. It’s whip-smart, innovative, rollicking, hard-core, and sweet all at once. The world’s so lucky for it. I had the chance to talk briefly with Arndt about its publication, in L.A., where we both live.

I’m so interested in how you went about thinking about and making your “first book.” Do you think of it as a compendium of the best of everything you’ve