Patricia Highsmith, author of novels like The Talented Mr. Ripley, Strangers on a Train, and The Price of Salt, was the daughter of artists, born in Fort Worth, Texas, and raised in New York City by her mother and stepfather, whose last name she adopted. She graduated from Barnard and had dreams of a writing career, which she pursued relentlessly. She also had a fondness for snails, and at one point, bred about 300 of them in her garden (and is rumored to have brought them to cocktail parties in her purse). So it is any surprise that today, we are talking about her giant snail story, The Quest for Blank Claveringi.”

Recommended in this episode: Dead Blondes and Bad Mothers by Sady Doyle and V. E. Schwab's The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Carmen Maria Machado on Highsmith (warts and all):

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jan/09/twisted-brilliance-patricia-highsmith-at-100

Next Episode: Tananarive Due’s novella Ghost Summer 

Our social media is @MonsterWrote on Twitter and Instagram. Our email is [email protected]. This episode was produced and researched by Lisa and Mel. Theme music is “Misconception” by Nicolas Gasparini, used with permission.

 

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