Fave's Faves: Lisa Lucas
This quarantine we’re asking some of our favorite people about some of their favorite things. Lisa Lucas, executive director of the National Book Foundation, answered some questions for the series.
What is your favorite place to read in your house, and where would you read if you could be anywhere in the world?
I dream of owning the perfect reading chair, since there is no room in my apartment for one. In the absence of that, I tend to read in bed (this, friends, is what all the extra pillows are for!). I suppose the pandemic has me longing for the ordinary, because if I could read anywhere right now, it would be on a very long subway ride. I miss the subway so much and maintain that I do my best reading on it. Over 25 years later, I can no longer count the stops I've missed because of a particularly compelling read.
What books do you return to most often, and why?
I don't know why I have latched on the weird set of books that I have latched onto, but I find myself re-reading Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth, James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time, several essays in David Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day, Mary Gaitskill's Bad Behavior, Toni Cade Bambara's Gorilla, My Love, Robert Caro's The Power Broker. These are probably thumbed through (if not re-read in full or part) a lot more often because there is a sentence or sections that I was never able to shake or I just recommend it a lot.
Have you ever written an author a fan letter? If not, who would you write to?
I haven't, which I regret! The one I absolutely should have written, and have now missed the chance to, is Toni Morrison. It makes me feel like I should take this moment of disconnection to write a couple.
What is your local bookstore, and how does it make you feel to walk through the door?
As a Brooklyn person, I feel like I should be able to claim Books Are Magic, which feels like a cozy neighborhood pub but with books instead of booze. In truth there are other bookstores closer to me, and the one I first called my own when I first moved to Williamsburg in 2003 was Spoonbill & Sugartown. Because I've been going there for so long, it makes me feel like I am in my 20s again. It's crammed with art books, philosophy, new fiction and nonfiction titles, with shelves used books, notebooks, cookbooks and poetry in the back. Back in the day, I'd spend hours there, looking for everything and bought way more books that I'd never heard of before than I could afford.
Bonus question: what is your quarantine kitchen MVP?
Quarantine Kitchen MVP is definitely Julia Turshen for me! I've loved both of her cookbooks. The recipes are fantastic, of course, but I love her books even more because she's such a warm, expressive guide - like a friend telling you stories while you are cooking together. She's certainly one of the voices that makes the fact that we are all separated feel a little less lonely. Bonus: dinner is ridiculously delicious.
Lisa Lucas has just been named senior vice president and publisher of Pantheon and Shocken Books. She served as the Executive Director of the National Book Foundation since 2016. Prior to joining the Foundation, she served as the Publisher of Guernica Magazine and the Director of Education at the Tribeca Film Institute.
