Notes and Links to Kristen Millares Young’s Work
A prize-winning novelist, journalist and essayist, Kristen Millares Young is the author of the memoir Desire Lines, forthcoming from Red Hen Press and Brilliance Audio on October 6, 2026, and the novel Subduction, named a staff pick by The Paris Review. “Kristen Millares Young will take readers along on her journey of discovery as she publishes her debut memoir this year,” writes People magazine in its exclusive cover reveal for Desire Lines, named a “Most Anticipated Feminist Book of 2026” by Ms. Magazine. “Young provides an intellectually courageous road map for readers reconciling the cracks in their own family narratives,” writes Shelf Awareness in a starred review.
Called “searching, generous, and unrelenting” by Melissa Febos, “explosive and daring” by Luis Alberto Urrea, and “alive with style and poetic lyricism” by Weike Wang, Desire Lines is a forensic investigation into the emotional topography of being a woman, a writer and a mother. Kristen narrated the Desire Lines audiobook to be released on October 6, 2026 by Brilliance Publishing. She received a 4Culture grant to support her memoir’s translation into Senderos del deseo by Majel Reyes Quesada. “In Desire Lines, Kristen Millares Young explores womanhood, human rights, and identity with a moral imperative and artistry that few writers achieve,” writes Brandon Hobson. “She is an immense literary talent, and this remarkable book should be read by all.”
Buy Desire Lines
Kristen Millares Young’s Website
Article and Preview and Interview with Kristen Millares Young Desire Lines in People Magazine
At about 1:00, Kristen describes a delectable meal she’s about to share in celebration with her neighbors
At about 3:05, Pete asks Kristen about her mindset as her memoir is a few days from publication
At about 5:00, Kristen describes the use of the second-person in the book after Pete asks about Cuban translations using “tú” or “Usted”
At about 6:00, Kristen responds to Pete’s asking about book tour events and publication info
At about 8:20, Kristen responds to Pete asking about her background with reading and writing, and talks about book as a continuing “solace” to her
At about 10:30, Kristen describes the “moving” experience of visiting Hemingway House as she is asked about formative and transformative writers and writing, Sara Ahmed and Audre Lorde are also highlighted
At about 15:25, Kristen responds to Pete’s question about contemporary favorites by citing Melissa Febos and Elissa Washuta
At about 17:40, Kristen reflects on continuity in a collection made up of individuals essays-she talks about her appreciation for “fractals”
At about 20:00, Kristen talks about different forms of storytelling: spiraling, for example, and those precepts set out by Ursula LeGuin and others
At about 22:05, Kristen sets up and reads the epigraph/opening poem of the memoir
At about 25:40, Pete lays out some of the book’s opening lines and asks Krsiten about her mindset in starting the book in Galicia
At about 30:15, Kristen gives background on Cybele, an important part of her book
At about 32:55, Kristen makes the salient point about the continuing propping up of rapists like Oddyseus and others from mythology
At about 36:50, Kristen responds to Pete's question about perspectives that she has had regarding two health scares 20 or so years apart
At about 42:50, Kristen speaks of her interactions and experiences in Cuba with writers and “jinetes”
At about 46:00, Kristen expands talks on the idea of women as “providers,” as evidenced by the previous comments on what she experienced in Cuba
At about 47:50, Kristen talks of the idea of the flâneur and misogynistic expectations
At about 49:40, Kristen responds to Pete asking about the supposed “protection” provided (or not) by men in her life and in society in general
At about 56:40, The two discuss expectations for women’s bodies, and Kristen points out “Our Lady of Perpetual Self-Loathing” as a chapter that reflects on these ideas
At about 1:02:20, Kristen discusses sexual harassment in the workplace
At about 1:03:10, Pete points out some profound quotes from the book and the two discuss systems and the ways in which systems oppress women, including sexual assault and rape victims; Kristen cites
At about 1:06:45, Kristen talks about “asserting regard” for herself and other women through this book
At about 1:09:00, Cybele as representative of women’s strength and dark humor are discussed-Kristen talks about “wit as a weapon”
At about 1:09:40, Pete asks Kristen about forgiveness and contrition as discussed in the book
At about 1:13:00, Kristen refers to Chekhov in connecting to her last two books in responding to Pete’s question about “catharsis”
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Please tune in for Episode 360 with Nafissa Thompson-Spires. Born and raised in Southern California, Nafissa Thompson-Spires is the author of the award-winning, National Book Award longlisted short story collection, Heads of the Colored People. Her short fiction and essays have appeared in The Paris Review Daily, New York Magazine’s “The Cut,” The Root, 400 Souls: A Community History of African America 1619-2019, and The 1619 Project, among other publications.
In addition to a debut novel with Scribner, The Four Wives and Five Deaths of Rich Milford, her young adult debut is forthcoming with Make Me a World (Penguin Random House). She is the recipient of a 2024 United States Artists Grant and a 2019 Whiting Award.
The episode airs on October 11.
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You can also donate at chuffed.org, World Central Kitchen, and so many more, and/or you can contact writer friend Ursula Villarreal-Moura directly or through Pete, as she has direct links with friends in Gaza.
