Minneapolis writer Norah Labiner's (Lab-in-er's) new novel "Miniatures" takes readers into the lives of a reclusive literary couple. Owen Leib {Lee-ib} has returned to Ireland after years of self-imposed exile. Owen fled to Paris after his first wife, Franny, supposedly committed suicide in 1964. There are rumors surrounding Franny's unpublished second novel--and speculation about the circumstances surrounding her death. I spoke to Labiner about her book--and the unusual way she began the novel. "Miniatures" begins with a list of how many famous people met their untimely demise--from F. Scott Fitzgerald's death while eating a chocolate bar--to Virginia's Woolf's suicidal drowning.

This file was digitized with the help of a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).