Hybrid Novels

The phrase “post-postmodernism” has appeared in Contemporary Literary Studies since the 20th century, but what does it mean? Scholars have defined the term in various, often contradictory ways. Existing studies also rarely centralise race – an essential component in the transition from postmodern irony to post-postmodern sincerity. Hybrid Novels analyses post-postmodernism’s only consistency and certainty: hybridity. This speaks for a broader social issue concerning the ethics of categorisation and the conflicting labels imposed on subjectivity. Hybrid Novels considers landmark American/British novels by Percival Everett, Jonathan Franzen, Zadie Smith, and David Foster Wallace, published from 1996 to 2001. It positions these authors at the centre of the post-postmodernism debate together for the first time. This book suggests that 2010s autofiction further develops post-postmodern tensions of irony and sincerity at the turn of the 21st century. Major American/Canadian novels by Sheila Heti, Ben Lerner, Teju Cole, and Tao Lin are discussed, published from 2010 to 2013.