Rivka Galchen Reads Aleksandar Hemon

In The New Yorker Fiction Podcast, Deborah Treisman interviews Rivka Galchen about her choice of Aleksandar Hemon's "The Bees, Part 1" for the show's 200th episode. Galchen discusses the story's unique language, emotional depth conveyed through comedy, and the paradoxical nature of its characters, particularly the father's obsession with reality expressed through unreal mediums like film and literature. The conversation explores themes of loss, displacement, family connections, and the metaphorical significance of bees in the narrative, highlighting the father's search for community and the story's blend of humor and tragedy. They delve into the blurred lines between fiction and reality, Hemon's writing style, and the story's poignant ending, reflecting on the complex father-child relationship and the enduring power of storytelling.