Book Review: ‘Transcription,’ by Ben Lerner
The New York Times • • technology
Key Points:
- Ben Lerner’s new novella, "Transcription," explores the delicate boundary between human perception and technology, focusing on themes like memory, eavesdropping, and the nature of literature.
- The narrative reflects on how technology can both sustain and stifle life, using vivid imagery such as glass filaments in the cochlea to illustrate its themes.
- Lerner is a prominent contemporary writer known for blending autofiction with intellectual and cultural references, with previous works like "10:04" and "The Topeka School," the latter a Pulitzer Prize finalist.
- Beyond fiction, Lerner is also a poet and essayist, engaging deeply with literary form and genre, and is the son of noted psychologist Harriet Lerner.
