Hey, it's Empire's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. The guest on the pod today,

A.M. Holmes, makes a great point about who gets to write the so-called great American novel.

That phrase, by the way, is one she doesn't even use, and her replacement for it is, I think,

alone worth listening to this interview for.

But anyway, Holmes talks about how historically in American literature,

women write the small domestic stories and men write the big political statement-type novels.

Her new book, The Unfolding, is her attempt to put those two ideas right up against each other.

It's about this super wealthy Republican power broker guy

whose life and entire worldview is shattered

by the election of former President Barack Obama.

At the same time, his home life isn't going great either.

And Holmes tells NPR's Ari Shapiro

that she likes to write from the perspective of characters

least likely to tell

their stories. And to her, an old school conservative, literally named the big guy, is the perfect

vehicle to examine older white men in power. In the U.S., national security news can feel far away

from daily life. Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.

On our new show, Sources and Methods. NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people

helping you understand why distant events matter here at home. Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

The author A.M. Holmes often writes about characters that have a very different set of

values and attributes from her. In The Unfolding, that main character is a rich Republican powerbroker.

Here's how Holmes describes the book.

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