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Joseph Schreiber

@roughghosts.bsky.social
2.3K followers 1.1K following 1.1K posts

Reader, writer, editor, lonely wanderer. Based in Calgary, Canada. Write about books at www.roughghosts.com Essays Editor at Minor Literature[s].

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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Autumn portraits along the Douglas Fir Trail.
Trail with rope railing. Red and yellow foliage in the foreground, fir trees in the background.Tall aspen poplars with yellow and green leaves amid fir trees.Looking down from atop the escarpment at a train and river beyond fir trees and mixed foliage.Tall aspen poplar with yellow leaves along a leaf strewn path on a bright, sunny day.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
I might have gotten a deal on a few books. To be fair, one I have already read as an ARC—On Transit—but I've always wanted a finished copy. Loved it.
Stack of books From top: Distant Transit by Maja Haderlap, Message from the Shadows by Antonio Tabucchi, We Would Have Told Each Other Everything by Judith Hermann, The Dispossessed by Szilárd Borbély, Poems New and Collected by Wisława Szymborska, and Wild Swim by Dorthe Nors
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Special arrival from Calcutta—the 26-27 Seagull catalogue filled with poetry, extracts, and art. and a recent release from their Czech List.
Two books: The Silent Years by Alena Mornštajnová and a narrow bright yellow volume with "Seagull Books" in gold lettering.Two page spread from Seagull Catalogue featuring text of a poem against a painting of a tree with autumn coloured leaves.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Mountain ash (rowan) berry triptych:
Tight cluster of bright red berries, green leaves with blue sky and other branches in distance.Multiple large clusters of red berries.Focus on single cluster of red berries with green leaves and grass in background.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
My #womenintranslation reading for the month of August. Two reviews still to come. Spoiler alert! Under a Pannonian Sky is a brilliant anthology of Hungarian poetry. @ottiliemulzet.bsky.social
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Moody, cloudy, and cooler today. Felt good.
Cloudy sky with light almost breaking through, framed to the left and along the bottom by trees.City centre in the distance under cloudy skies. River and greenery in the foreground.Path through poplar trees, briefly lit by sun breaking through the clouds.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Welcome treats from @archipelagobooks.bsky.social — a title coming out next month, and a field guide to forthcoming releases!
Book: Jérôme Lindon by Jean Echenoz, translated from the French by Mark Polizzotti.Catalogue with bright coloured children's illustration—Archipelago Books & Elsewhere Editions 2026 Fall & 2027 Spring.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Recent arrivals: a Faroese novel for #WITMonth, the latest from multi-gendered Danish writer and performer Madame Nielsen, and an Albanian novel due in October. @transitbooks.bsky.social @prototypepubs.bsky.social #IstrosBooks
Book: On the Other Side is March by Sólrún Michelsen, translated from the Faroese by Marita Thomsen.Book: Lamento by Madame Nielsen, trans. Gaye KynochBook: Sarajevo Saga by Stefan Çapaliku, translated by Vlora Konushevci
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
July reading. Two reviews to come, but in the meantime, on to Women in Translation month.
Books, clockwise from upper left: Maybe This Time by Alois Hotschnig, Is Beauty Good by Rosalind Belben, How complete+final the feeling as I lift its curve in the net by Ellen Dillon, The Pure and The Impure by Colette, Intelligence Is the Art of Remaining Faithful Under Shifting Circumstances by Alexander Kluge and Anselm Kiefer.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
My sweet Georgia for #caturday. Seventeen and still the most beautiful girl in the world.
Black and white photo of a black and white cat.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
In the post, a fine collection of essays by @cclarklewes.bsky.social. And I am unlikely to ever write a book, but I am still thrilled to have my name on the (back) cover. @blackheraldpress.bsky.social
Book: What Lies Ahead and other essays by Caroline Clark.Back of book with detailed description including the following blurb:

“In these essays, written over a span of almost two decades, one has the sense that Clark is feeling her way into and through years of accumulated reading, contemplation, and experience to loosen a stream of thoughtful reflection that ebbs and flows as it searches its way towards her reader. Oh, how fortunate to be on the receiving end.”

Joseph Schreiber, essay editor at Minor Literature[s]

​
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Eleven years ago I had a cardiac arrest due to a pulmonary embolism. No angels,no tunnel of light, no rising above my body to watch my son and then the EMT perform CPR. It was a long time before I learned just how low survival rate is from such an event. Still feel a little numb.
Evening sun on a field of purple and pink wildflowers with trees in the background.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
It's Twisted Spoon Day again in my house. These two are already out in the UK and will come out in North America later this year. @twistedspoon.bsky.social
Two books: Visions & Apparitions by Ladislav Klíma ad Prague Triptych by Johannes Urzidil.Same two books on a bed, eyed by a tabby cat in the background.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Now out, Rachel Careau's wonderful new translation of Colette's The Pure and The Impure. I will have a review out very soon. @wwnorton.com
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
My mother died on this day ten years ago. My father followed her 11 days later and although I could write and talk about his passing, it was almost a year before I even sensed her in a dream. That story follows in the next post.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
It's always nice when a book I almost forgot that I ordered arrives on a Sunday. Looking forward to this hybrid essay by Ellen Dillon.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
Books finished in June, not counting a couple of PDFs for books to blurb. Reviewing is slow due to continuing problems with my eyes and inability to get proper glasses, so I've included a bonus June wildflower shot.
stack of books from top: Aside From My Heart, All is Well by Hector Abad, Glantz by Tobias Ryan, Dying in Toronto by Daša Drndić, and The Heat of a Man by Jón Kalman StefánssonSilver-leafed wolf willow and yellow and brown daisy-like flowers (blanket flower) amid green grass.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Latest review copy, coming October 13. @archipelagobooks.bsky.social
Book: Inshallah, Madonna, Inshallah by Miljenko Jergović, translated from the Croatian by Ellen Elias-Bursać and Mirza Purić
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
It has been a rather cool, wet start to summer here (sorry to my friends melting/roasting elsewhere) and it looks like some blooms and berries will be a no-show, but we have a wealth of wild roses in the fields and on the trails.
Cascade of pink wild roses over a metal fence railing.Wild roses in the bushes alongside a boardwalk in the forest.Close up of two rose buds.Close up of a dark pink wild rose with another in the background.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Recent arrivals: Czech writer Jan Němec's stories written in the first years of the Ukraine war, Drndić's account of her first year in Toronto, and Khoury's first novel, due in December. #seagullbooks, #istrosbooks, @archipelagobooks.bsky.social
Book: LILLIPUTIN: Tales from a War by Jan NěmecBook: Dying in Toronto by Daša DrndićBook: On the Relations of the Circle by Elias Khoury
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
A flock of Seagull Books landed today, topped with Naveen Kishore's latest poetry collection. With many thanks! @ottiliemulzet.bsky.social @tesslewis.bsky.social @wordkunst.bsky.social
Stack of books, from top: Ode to a Grieving Angel by Naveen Kishore, Ludwig's Room by Alois Hotschnig, Flying Yoginis by Irwin Allan Sealy, Night Breaks Apart, Like Pomegranate Seeds in My Palm by Aakriti Kuntal, Gold Sand, Gold Water by Nalini Bera, Under a Pannonian Sky: Ten Women Poets from Hungary edited by Ottilie Mulzet,and Intelligence is the Art of Remaining Faithful. . . by Alexander Kluge and Anselm Kiefer
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
New arrivals: @archipelagobooks.bsky.social (Nov 26), @erratumpress.bsky.social, Seagull Books, @ndbooks.bsky.social
Four books. Top row: Murmours from the Hills by Scholastique Mukasonga, Beauty, Burning: The Condition of Music by Daniela Cascella. Lower row: Mrs. Kleofas's Rooster by Gyula Krúdy, Tablets–Secrets of the Clay by Dunya Mikhail
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
So, if everyone is talking about literary prizes at the moment, perhaps it is time for this little gem in which Bernhard reflects on the farces that developed around the prizes he received in his lifetime.
Book featuring black and white photo of Thomas Bernhard titled My Prizes: An Accounting, translated by Carol Brown Janeway.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
It wouldn't be the Victoria Day long weekend, the unofficial kick off of summer, without a little snow and temperatures around 0C, at least for a day or two. #YYC
The trunks of two aspen trees amid greening bushes with a covering of fresh snow on the ground.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
New review copies: Jérôme Lindon by Jean Echenoz due in September from @archipelagobooks.bsky.social and Is Beauty Good by Rosalind Belben with an intro by Esther Kinsky(!!!) coming from @nyrb-imprints.bsky.social this summer ( @andotherstories.bsky.social in UK).
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Went into the forest this past week for the first time in a month or so and there were more trees down than usual, likely due to the intense winds we had.
Trail through a forest of Douglas fir trees with bright sunshine.Trail passing under several fallen trees which are propped up on a rope railing.Three large trees down in the forest cutting off the trail.Set of stairs with log railings in the forest. No green yet save for the fir trees.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
I haven't posted a "books finished this month" post for a while because my reading has been slow. But this month was better. Review of "In a Cabin, in the Woods" still to come.
Stack of books. From top down: In a Cabin, In the Woods by Michael Krüger, The Abyss by Jeyamohan, Eternidades/Eternities by Juan Ramón Jiménez, Gold Dust by Ibrahim al-Koni, Maybe Even Happiness by Ludovic Bruckstein, Fourteen Ways of Looking by Erin Vincent, and Gender Trouble by Judith Butler.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Today's book mail. The final part of Jón Kalman Stefánsson's Trilogy of the Boy will be out in North America in June. Excited! @biblioasis.bsky.social
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
More new books: I've never read Hector Abad but this sounds great (thanks @archipelagobooks.bsky.social), The Book of Homes features a quote from my review of Bajani's If You Kept a Record of Sins (@deepvellum.bsky.social), and a long awaited collection by Buddhadeva Bose (tr @arunava.bsky.social)
Three books: Aside from my Heart All is Well by Héctor Abad, The Book of Homes by Andrea Bajani, and Restless was the Night and Other Stories by Buddhadeva Bose.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Recent arrivals: Seagull Books, isolarii, @univnebpress.bsky.social @andotherstories.bsky.social
Book: The Town I Never Told You About: Poems, 2022-2024 by Ghassan Zaqtan (tr Robin Moger)Palm sized book with William Blake image on cover – Ah!merica by Allen GinsbergTall thin book: Communicating Vessels by André BretonReview copy of The Past Pursues Us Like Detectives, Debt Collectors, Thieves by Juan Pablo Villalobos (July 2026)
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
A monochrome Easter, perhaps, but this little character whose white winter coat is fading makes one believe spring is not too far away now.
Snow covered path bordered by bare trees, bushes and grass.Small hare with a half white, half brown coat in the snow at the edge of a trail.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
So, I had my second cataract surgery yesterday. On a walk today I was struck by this view which I see almost every day. With two new, crystal clear acrylic lenses everything (mid-distance and beyond) looks so crisp and clear . Of course, many surfaces at home now look very grubby. . .
Landscape, snow-covered foreground, then bare tree and spruce trees, with downtown office towers in the distance.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Excellent book mail to end the week. Dual language edition of Juan Ramón Jiménez's Eternities from Bitter Oleander Press and 14 Ways of Looking by @erinvincent.bsky.social ordered from the UK not only because @cbeditions.bsky.social rocks but the Canadian release is hardcover at $35 CDN (from M&S).
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
A new translation by Rachel Careau of Colette's The Pure and the Impure coming this July.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
Incoming: The latest from Istros Books. #RomanianLit
Book: Maybe Even Happiness by Ludovic Bruckstein
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
Expecting some more white tonight, but for now some black and white from yesterday. #YCC
Black and white landscape, dark fir trees in foreground, downtown Calgary in the distance, voluminous white clouds.Black and white landscape looking upriver. Patchy snow along shoreline in the foreground, dark fir tree lined escarpment in background, clouds in the sky.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Fresh snow and sunshine brightens a bleak world.
Snow covered path descending through forest toward sunlit trees.Further along same path, more of the sunlit trees visible.At the bend in the trail, sun now hitting trees to the right.Open, snow covered field with bare trees, fir tree covered slope in the distance, in bright sunlight.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
Wrapping a good week for book mail, two forthcoming titles from @transitbooks.bsky.social , due in August and April.
Two books: Slow Elephants of Milan by Ángel Bonomini (Aug) and Abyss by Jeyamohan (April)
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
New arrivals, recent releases from Seagull Books. Looking good! Two from the Pride List plus novels by Austrian and Czech writers. Many thanks!
Four books, clockwise from upper left: Hymn to Mornay Eels by Mirielle Best, Chapal Rani, the Last Queen of Bengal by Sandip Roy, My Mother's Silver Fox by Alois Hotschnig, and The Mushroom Gatherer by Viktorie Hanišová.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
Gradually spending the gift cards my gave me for Christmas... @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social @nyrb-imprints.bsky.social
Two books: Vilhelm's Room by Tove Ditlevsen, The Lord by Soraya Antonius
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
In the mail today. A collection of work by a cult poet of the 70s and 80s, translated from the Hindi by @saudaminideo.bsky.social
Book: The World is Made Up Every Day: Selected Poems by Alok Dhanwa, translated by Saudamini Deo
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
Latest book mail. Coming out from @biblioasis.bsky.social in March.
Book: Every Time We Say Goodbye by Ivana Sajko, translated from the Croatian by Mima Simić.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
January reads. A modest amount, even for me, and as usual I'm two reviews behind.
Four books, clockwise: Chronicles of a Village by Nguyen Thanh Hien, Landscape with Landscape by Gerald Murnane, Tamil Terrains, ed by Nedra Rodrigo and Geetha Sukumaran, and The Answer to Lord Chandos by Pascal Quinard.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
New arrival. @tobiasvryan.bsky.social
Book: GLANTZ by Tobias Ryan
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
Just in: Queen by Birgitta Trotzig, translated from the Swedish by Sasha Vogel, out next from @archipelagobooks.bsky.social Really looking forward to this one!
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Yes I should be reading book already on my shelves, but I'm also trying to order some of the titles that have been sitting on my waitlists. @lesfugitivespress.bsky.social #Seagullbooks
Books: The Little Horse by Thorvald Steen, tr by James Anderson, and Selfies by Sylvie Weil tr by Roz Schwartz
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
After my so-called "book club" meeting this morning, I popped into a bookstore to pick up a birthday gift for my son and I thought I'd check the bargain basement... Götz and Meyer is almost impossible to find, and a stack of nyrb published/distributed books.
Stack of books, from top:
Götz and Meyer by David Albahari
Lament for Julia by Susan Taubes
The Silentiary by Antonio Di Bennedetto
A Strange and Sublime Address by Amit Chaudhuri
The Wrong Turning by Stephen Johnston
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 01/01/2026
My reading for November and December 2025. Nothing like a car accident, concussion and whiplash to derail one's intentions, but slowly I am getting back on track. Two reviews and a year end wrap up to come soon.
Stack of books. From top: Becoming Animal by Teresa Präauer, An Instinctive Feeling of Innocence by Dana Grigorcea, Advent by Gunnar Gunnarsson, Ancient Algorithms by Kristine Øgaard Jensen (and others), The Folded Clock by Gerhard Rühm, The Sorrow of Angels by Jón Kalman Stefánsson.
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
First post-Christmas purchases.
Books: The Third Solitude by Benjamin Libman and The Answer to Lord Chandos by Pascal Quinard
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Joseph Schreiber @roughghosts.bsky.social · 23/12/2025
Arrived late last week, this iconic work of Czech literature, The Grandmother by Božena Němcová. Originally published in 1855, now out in Susan Reynolds' translation from @jantarbooks.bsky.social
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