…won in 2020 by Martha Anne Toll for her intensely evocative Three Muses. I submitted my own finely crafted novel in 2022. No win. However, in a moment of writerly despair, I didn’t look at the email attached to my Submittable account for at least a month. When I did,…
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An Interview with Olufemi Terry
…step with the zeitgeist. Martha Anne Toll is a literary and cultural critic and a novelist. Her second novel, Duet for One, a musical love story and a journey through grief, was published in spring 2025. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published in 2022. Believe in what we…
“The Best Book I Read in 2025”
…weird in delightful ways.” ~Martha Anne Toll The House of Illusionists: and Other Stories by Vanessa Fogg. “Each story is a portal into a rich, fantastical new world with beautiful imagery and compelling characters. The language is polished and beautiful, inspiring one to pause and savor before diving back in…
…Literary Press). Reviewed by Martha Anne Toll. “Charyn has a distinct storytelling style that takes getting used to. If he were a student in a writing class, his prose would be termed ‘all tell and no show.’ Since he has published more than 50 books, one must assume his style…
Maria La Divina: A Novel of Maria Callas
…fully inhabits his muse. Martha Anne Toll is a literary and cultural critic and a novelist. Her second novel, Duet for One, a musical love story and a journey through grief, was just published. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published in 2022. Believe in what we do? Support…
32 Books They Should Assign in School (but Probably Won’t)
…and revelatory. A must-read.” ~Martha Anne Toll The Quick & the Dead: A Novel by Joy Williams. “Williams’ second novel follows three unusual teenagers as they explore a landscape of wildlife, crime, and occasional ghosts. This book opens like a portal to a world of ordinary strangeness, and more students…
7 Books that Get the Classical-Music World Right
…contribute to the ages. Martha Anne Toll’s second novel, Duet for One, came out May 6, 2025, with generous pre-publication praise. Her debut novel, Three Muses, won the Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction and was shortlisted for the Gotham Book Prize. Toll serves on the board of directors of…
…at the center of Martha Anne Toll’s latest novel, Duet for One, they’re men out of time. Their wife and mother, Adele Pearl, is dead. She was a renowned classical pianist, playing around the world with Victor as the “Pearl and Pearl” piano duo. She was Adam’s mentor, encouraging his…
The Worst of Times, the Best of Times
…into a Family; Jean Widner’s research-based The Adoption Paradox; Martha Anne Toll’s literary novel Duet for One; and Elaine U. Cho’s space-opera sequel, Teo’s Durumi, coming August 5th. Alice Stephens is the author of the novel Famous Adopted People. Believe in what we do? Support the nonprofit Independent!
An Interview with Gioia Diliberto
…review of Firebrands here.] Martha Anne Toll is a novelist and literary and cultural critic. Her debut novel, Three Muses, won the Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction and was shortlisted for the Gotham Book Prize. Her next novel, Duet for One, will appear in May 2025. Toll has received…
…Shafak (Knopf). Reviewed by Martha Anne Toll. “Zaleekah’s is a family of immigrants to England, albeit well-educated and cosmopolitan ones. She has fallen in love with a woman, and her journey takes her back to her roots, where she must delve into the meaning of her family’s past. As she…
An Interview with Sarah Seltzer
…once the fog of this moment clears a bit. Martha Anne Toll is a literary and cultural critic and a novelist. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published in 2022. Her second novel, Duet for One, is forthcoming in May 2025. Believe in what we do? Support the nonprofit…
Our 7 Most Favorable Reviews in August 2024
…Shafak (Knopf). Reviewed by Martha Anne Toll. “Shafak has adopted W.G. Sebald’s style of placing choice photographs throughout her narrative. These photos illustrate ancient artifacts and overland explorers, giving the book its lovely gauzy quality of hovering in a multiverse that spans fiction and nonfiction. I quickly sank into Shafak’s…
…— and terrifying — capacity to destroy it all. Martha Anne Toll is a literary and cultural critic and a novelist. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published in 2022. Her second novel, Duet for One, is forthcoming in early 2025. Believe in what we do? Support the nonprofit…
…McCullough, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Anne Applebaum. I love noir, Trollope, George Eliot, Elizabeth Bowen. How does your teaching impact your writing? I’ve always loved teaching. The energy and inventiveness of the students. They’re amazing. But it draws on some of the same energy as writing, and as much as I…
An Interview with Caroline Leavitt
…kid, as an adolescent, a teen, and an adult! Martha Anne Toll is a book critic and a novelist. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published last fall. Her second novel, Duet for One, is forthcoming in early 2025. Believe in what we do? Support the nonprofit Independent!
An Interview with Judith Lindbergh
…wonder about the world. [Photo by Sarah Lyman Kravits.] Martha Anne Toll is a book critic and a novelist. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published last fall. Her second novel, Duet for One, is forthcoming in early 2025. Believe in what we do? Support the nonprofit Independent!
…went all in on Anne Enright when I realized I’d never read her. Runner-up: Colson Whitehead. Books in a Series: For some reason, I started in the middle of Linnea Hartsuyker’s Golden Wolf saga, with The Sea Queen, rather than The Half-Drowned King (be sure to read Carrie Callaghan’s reviews…
“The Best Book I Read in 2023”
…of Sappho, translated by Anne Carson (Vintage). This complete book of the incomplete remnants of Sappho’s ancient poetry offers the best of what transformative reading can give us: an invitation to travel into the past, a blaze to immolate the idea that we can reconnect with that past, and a…
…makes the arduous trip through America’s byzantine healthcare system. Martha Anne Toll is a book critic and a novelist. Her prizewinning debut novel, Three Muses, was published last fall. Her second novel, Duet for One, is forthcoming in early 2025. Believe in what we do? Support the nonprofit Independent!
The Oud Player of Cairo: A Novel
…humans who live them. Martha Anne Toll is a book critic and novelist. Her debut, Three Muses, was shortlisted for the Gotham Book Prize and won the Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction. Her second novel, Duet for One, is due out in 2025. Believe in what we do? Support…
…originally ran in 2022.] Martha Anne Toll won the 2020 Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction, and her novel, Three Muses, is forthcoming from Regal House Press (fall 2022). She is a frequent contributor to NPR Books, the Millions, the Washington Post, and other outlets. For her fiction and nonfiction,…
Panel in the Spotlight: “Debut Authors: Paths to Publication”
…conversation with debut authors Martha Anne Toll (Three Muses), Charlene Thomas (Seton Girls), and Anjili Babbar (Finders: Justice, Faith, and Identity in Irish Crime Fiction). Together, they’ll help you learn what they’ve learned along the way! Afterward, stick around to buy (and have them sign) their debuts from our official…
An Interview with Martha Anne Toll
…a longtime social-justice advocate, Martha Anne Toll is also an accomplished writer. Her essays and book reviews have appeared in the Washington Post, Pointe Magazine, the Millions, and NPR, as well as the Independent, while her fiction has been published in Catapult, Slush Pile, Poetica E Magazine, and many other…
7 Most Favorable Reviews in June 2022
…(Bright Leaf). Reviewed by Martha Anne Toll. “It is a complicated task to weave together two lives. Cheney and Matthiessen had different career trajectories, and due to their generational gap, lived in separate time periods. So, particularly impressive in Bane’s work is the thorough, 360-degree view he gives to his…
A Union Like Ours: The Love Story of F.O. Matthiessen and Russell Cheney
…sociological and intellectual history. Martha Anne Toll won the 2020 Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction, and her novel, Three Muses, is forthcoming from Regal House Press (fall 2022). She is a frequent contributor to NPR Books, the Millions, the Washington Post, and other outlets. For her fiction and nonfiction,…
An Interview with Barbara Quick
…piece of music can. Martha Anne Toll won the 2020 Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction, and her novel, Three Muses, is forthcoming from Regal House Press (fall 2022). She is a frequent contributor to NPR Books, the Millions, the Washington Post, and other outlets. For her fiction and nonfiction,…
…originally ran in 2020.] Martha Anne Toll won the 2020 Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction, and her novel, Three Muses, is forthcoming from Regal House Press (fall 2022). She is a frequent contributor to NPR Books, the Millions, the Washington Post, and other outlets. For her fiction and nonfiction,…
An Interview with Mitchell James Kaplan
…(At least, I can’t.) Martha Anne Toll’s debut novel, Three Muses, won the Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction and is forthcoming from Regal House Publishing in fall 2022. For 26 years, she served as the founding executive director of the Butler Family Fund supporting social-justice issues. Like what we…
…later, more tolerant time. Martha Anne Toll won the 2020 Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction, and her novel, Three Muses, is forthcoming from Regal House Press (fall 2022). She is a frequent contributor to NPR Books, the Millions, the Washington Post, and other outlets. For her fiction and nonfiction,…
An Interview with Jeffrey Colvin
…instilling greater empathy in readers. [Photo by Nina Subin.] Martha Anne Toll is a frequent contributor to NPR Books, the Millions, the Washington Post, and other outlets. For her fiction and nonfiction, please visit her website, and tweet to her at @marthaannetoll. Like what we do? Click here to support…
…originally ran in 2018.] Martha Anne Toll’s essays appear regularly on NPR’s website and in the Millions, as well as in Narrative Magazine, Tin House, the Nervous Breakdown, Heck Magazine, and the Independent. Her fiction has appeared in Catapult, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Yale's Letters Journal, Inkapture Magazine, Poetica E Magazine,…
…weren’t living in 2018. Martha Anne Toll’s essays appear regularly on NPR’s website and in the Millions, as well as in Narrative Magazine, Tin House, the Nervous Breakdown, Heck Magazine, and the Independent. Her fiction has appeared in Catapult, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Yale's Letters Journal, Inkapture Magazine, Poetica E Magazine,…
5 Most Popular Posts: September 2017
…of Her Own Vietnam. Martha Anne Toll conducted a thoughtful Q&A with Kanter, one that touched on everything from women warriors’ emotional scars to the rise of feminist presses. Click here to get our free biweekly e-newsletter, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest! And if you’d like…
…inspired by the war. Martha Anne Toll’s nonfiction has appeared in NPR, the Millions, Heck, [PANK], the Nervous Breakdown, Tin House blog, Bloom, and Narrative; her fiction in Slush Pile Magazine, Vol.1 Brooklyn, Yale’s Letters Journal, Poetica E Magazine, Referential Magazine, Inkapture Magazine, and Wild. Her novel in process, represented…
5 Most Popular Posts: May 2017
…interview with Laura McBride. Martha Anne Toll spoke to the novelist about ‘Round Midnight, character development, and the trick to interweaving multiple storylines. “No, YOU’RE Stupid!” Using The Great Gatsby as an example, columnist E.A. Aymar defended the notion that it’s okay to celebrate the Western canon and branch out…
An Interview with Laura McBride
…is an opening break. Martha Anne Toll’s nonfiction has appeared in the Millions, NPR, Heck, [PANK], the Nervous Breakdown, Tin House blog, Bloom, Narrative, and the Washington Independent Review of Books; her fiction in Slush Pile Magazine, Vol.1 Brooklyn, Yale’s Letters Journal, Poetica E Magazine, Referential Magazine, Inkapture Magazine, and…
5 Most Popular Posts: September 2015
…Furies by Lauren Groff. Martha Anne Toll’s perceptive look at this hot-off-the-presses bestseller drew lots of eyes — and likely helped spark a new wave of Groff fans. “8 Types You’ll Always Find at Book Festivals.” Are you that guy? The one dying to tell the author your life story?…
…only captures, but masters. Martha Anne Toll’s essays have appeared on NPR and in the Millions, Narrative Magazine, Tin House blog, The Nervous Breakdown, and Heck Magazine (forthcoming). Her fiction has appeared in Yale's Letters Journal, Inkapture Magazine, Poetica Magazine, Referential Magazine, and Wild: A Quarterly. Martha directs a social-justice…
…Anthony Doerr here and Martha Anne Toll's essay about his work here.] The Son by Philipp Meyer — an old-fashioned story in a five-generation frontier saga blends modern sensibility and great writing. ~David Stewart [Read Fred Haefele's review of The Son here.] Orfeo by Richard Powers. This profound, intelligent, and…
…Independent’s review of Orfeo.] Martha Anne Toll is a professionally trained violist and a writer. Her work has appeared on NPR, in the Millions, Narrative Magazine, the Washington Independent Review of Books, and Wild: A Quarterly. She is the executive director of a nationwide social-justice foundation based in Washington, DC.…
…isn’t it?“Privacy for Writers.” Martha Anne Toll’s thought-provoking essay on scribes’ need for solitude had hundreds of visitors clicking and pondering.An interview with author Juan Cole. Escalating horrors in the region may have compelled people to seek out the insights of Cole, author of The New Arabs: How the Millennial…
…He’s correct. For writers, it is the elixir of creativity.Martha Anne Toll’s work has appeared on NPR and in the Millions, Narrative Magazine, and the Washington Independent Review of Books. She is executive director of a nationwide philanthropy focused on ending homelessness and the death penalty.
…basements. “Everything Is Illuminated.” Martha Anne Toll’s evocative essay about what makes novelist Anthony Doerr’s work — including his latest masterpiece, All the Light We Cannot See — so luminescent clearly struck a chord with readers. Michael Causey’s review of But Enough about You: Essays by Christopher Buckley. “The son…
…their generosity is turned toward the great world outside. Martha Anne Toll’s work has appeared on NPR, in the Millions, and in the Washington Independent Review of Books. She is the executive director of a nationwide philanthropy focused on ending homelessness and the death penalty.
…naming than the form. Martha Anne Toll is a writer whose work has appeared on NPR and in the Millions. She is a frequent contributor to the Washington Independent Review of Books and is executive director of the Butler Family Fund, a nationwide philanthropy focused on ending homelessness and the…
I Hear America Reading: A Fourth of July Ode
…sing along, read along. This land is your land. Martha Anne Toll is executive director of the Butler Family Fund, a nationwide philanthropy focused on ending homelessness and the death penalty. She has been featured as a book commentator on NPR and is represented for her debut novel.
For Passover, Fresh New Takes on “People of the Book”
…but altogether different from Anne Frank. Wim and Marie, a young Dutch couple, fulfill their humanitarian duty by harboring a Jew traveling under the pseudonym Nico. Anyone visiting the house carries the threat of betrayal, putting all three characters in mortal peril. Keilson, himself a German Jewish émigré to the…
By Martha Anne Toll Now comes Anna Karenina, once more bursting onto the world stage via Joe Wright’s grand new film. In case you haven’t had the chance to read it, I’d like to recommend Leo Tolstoy’s screenplay. Anna Karenina is a big book about everything. It covers the spectrum…
…Shields’ novel, Unless, and Anne Roiphe’s Loving Kindness. Each of these books delves into a mother’s heartbreaking and irresolvable split from her absent daughter. In Unless, like Birds of Paradise, the divide is over a traumatic event in the daughter’s life. In Loving Kindness, it is religious differences that open…
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