Cion & the other works of Zakes Mda
South African writer Zakes Mda remains concerned with how people remember the past, says Laila Lalami, who lays his latest, Cion, against his prior novels.
The life, death, and mythmaking of Romain Gary
As the 2007 Prix Goncourt announcement draws nigh, Emma Garman considers the tragic but exciting life of Romain Gary, the only writer to win the prestigious French literary award twice.
On December 2nd, 1980, Romain Gary lay down in his Paris apartment, a synagogue-size menorah at the foot of the bed, and put a .38 caliber [...]
No trick! God’s treat is Jesus*
Just in time for Halloween, the Baltimore-Philly Poe war goes national.
True story: while the reporter was taping Helen McKenna-Uff and me at the Poe House last week we walked out the back door of the house and a black cat came slinking through Poe’s yard. Had an axe-wielding maniac followed on its heels, we [...]
On digitization
“The Internet will not bring us a universal library, much less an encyclopedic record of human experience.” (Via.)
The science and mystery of dreams
Rachel Aviv considers the legacy of Freud’s theories of dreams in the age of modern neuroscience.
VQR on South America in the 21st Century
VQR plots the contents of its new South America issue on a map of the continent. (Daniel Alarcón co-edited.)
The life of the man behind The Invisible Man
“A big problem with the biographical evaluation of Ellison … is that he was so much smarter and a better writer than most of the people around him.”
Fifteen seconds for In Search of Lost Time
A mid-November deadline looms, and between work and writing, I don’t have much steam left for books, email, or blogging. In fact, I’m at about 65% on the brain-deadness scale. Which translates into a whole lot of YouTube.
So while my mother-in-law, Jane, recently enjoyed all 3500 pages of In Search of Lost Time, [...]
When I Was a Loser controversy drags on
A parent still has her panties in a wad over a “lewd” essay assigned from When I Was a Loser. (See also.)
Paris Review interview extravaganza
In the Guardian last week, Orhan Pamuk recounted how, while writing his first novel, he read the Paris Review’s author interviews to bolster his own resolve.
When in 1977 in Istanbul I first read Faulkner in the Paris Review, I felt as elated as if I had stumbled on a sacred text. I was 25 years [...]
The Smart Set: Lauren Cerand’s weekly events
The Smart Set is a weekly feature, compiled by Lauren Cerand, that usually appears Mondays at 12:30pm and highlights the best of the week to come. Special favor is given to New York’s independent booksellers and venues, and low-cost and free events. Please send details to lauren [at] maudnewton.com by the Thursday prior to publication, [...]
Dorothy Allison’s roast duck & gravy (and new book)
According to a bio that follows Dorothy Allison’s gravy recollections, she’s working on a new novel, She Who. (Thanks, Dana.)
Lasdun on Carver’s early stories
James Lasdun says Carver’s unedited fiction is characterized by the “thrashing around writers do when they want to force meanings on their stories.”
Matthew Tiffany on Portland, Maine’s Longfellow Books
From time to time I’m posting bookstore appreciations from readers. Below Matthew Tiffany of Condalmo praises Longfellow Books.
Portland, Maine has a good number of bookstores, considering its small size. Along with the late (and missed) Casco Bay Books, you have Yes Books, with its amazing selection of used and rare books. (Leave your [...]
Doris Lessing, ideological alien
Doris Lessing is one of many writers once barred from entering the U.S. by the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952.
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