Self-Portrait With Boy

2020 Longlist

Lu Rile is a relentlessly focused young photographer struggling to make ends meet. Working three jobs, responsible for her aging father, and worrying that her crumbling loft apartment is being sold to developers, she is at a point of desperation. One day, in the background of a self-portrait, Lu accidentally captures an image of a boy falling to his death. The photograph turns out to be startlingly gorgeous, the best work of art she’s ever made. It’s an image that could change her life…if she lets it. But the decision to show the photograph is not easy. The boy is her neighbour’s son, and the tragedy brings all the building’s residents together. It especially unites Lu with the boy’s beautiful grieving mother, Kate..( Lu feels increasingly unsettled and guilty).

About the Author

Rachel Lyon’s novel Self-Portrait With Boy was long-listed for the Center for Fiction’s 2018 First Novel Prize and is in feature film development at Topic Studios. Her short work has appeared or is forthcoming in One Story, Longreads, Joyland, Electric Literature, and elsewhere. She is Editor-in-Chief of Epiphany and co-founder of the reading series Ditmas Lit.

Librarian’s Comments

Set in the early 90’s Brooklyn on the brink of gentrification, Self-Portrait with Boy is a provocative commentary about the emotional dues that must be paid on the road to success, a powerful exploration of the complex terrain of female friendship, and a brilliant debut from novelist.  Münchner Stadtbibliothek, Germany