An Elegy for Mathematics
A man in search of a golden bead that is rumored to grant immortality. A would-be astronaut's manifesto. An archivist who can't help but record all of life's statistics. In these thirteen small stories, Anne Valente takes us to worlds both fantastic and familiar, forgotten and foretold, and in tight, layered prose, she strives to unravel all of the tangled questions we have about ourselves. From the field guides of astronomy to permutations on desire, these small stories are expansive and encyclopedic, a cataloguing of love and loss, an attempt to find a formula for everything that courses through us.
4. An Elegy for Mathematics
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"In An Elegy for Mathematics, Valente articulates the strangeness and complexity of everyday emotions with startling precision. These stories are daring, beautiful, and urgent."
—Seth Fried, author of The Great Frustration
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"Whether touching on the epic or the mundane, each of Anne Valente's stories is a sweeping but precise examination of what it means to be human. These stories can be very painful, and can be very redemptive, but the grace that carries both along is bright and breathtaking. This is an astounding collection from a talented young writer."
—Amber Sparks, author of And I Do Not Forgive You