The Varying Poverties of Now In the appendix to his brief but radiant 2010 manifesto ‘Reality Hunger’—a supremely confident and practically pedagogical collage of quotations and personal observations published in order to define a perceived new age of literature—David Shields writes with this kind of over-excited, unnecessarily aggressive tone. He’s […]
Songs That Make Books Better
Published on :Songs That Make Books Better A few months ago I wrote about some pretty general musical moments in fiction, basically because I think there’s a kind of cool connection between hearing a tune in my head while also reading someone else’s interpretation of said tune. I’d go so far as […]
Op Ed: The Wheelbarrows of Violence
Published on :The Wheelbarrows of Violence After missing a 7:15am train on my way upstate last Saturday, I was talking to a homeless guy outside Penn Station while doing my best to enjoy a post-failure cigarette, knowing that I’d have to wait another two hours for the next departure. It had been […]
Living Long and Prospering: Five Reasons Why Old Sci-Fi Paperbacks Are Awesome
Published on :Five Reasons Why Old Sci-Fi Paperbacks Are Awesome I was kind of at a loss for something to write this week — until I noticed a stack of paperbacks sitting in the corner of my perpetually messy room. And while I am in no way a true sci-fi aficionado, […]
Featured Author Review: The Case of the Man Who Died Laughing by Tarquin Hall
Published on :The Case of the Man Who Died Laughing Tarquin Hall Simon & Schuster, 2010 ISBN-10: 1439172382 — ♦ — Unlike Sharon, (my fellow LitStack contributor), who could actually vouch for the accuracy of Tarquin Hall’s descriptions and provide an interesting introduction, I’ve never been to India. (Yes, I actually want you […]
Living Long and Prospering: Artscience Sounds Nice, But It’s Totally Lame
Published on :Artscience Sounds Nice, But It’s Totally Lame It’s funny how easy it’s become — not that I assume it was ever too difficult — to separate the word “art” from the traditions, meanings and general contexts within which it’s operated in modern society, not to mention human history as a […]
Living Long and Prospering: A Response to “How to Read a Racist Book to Your Kids”
Published on :You’ve heard it said that white people are fucking crazy. Having spent 22 years as a member of this decidedly unselective group, I can attest to that. And here’s one thing I’ve learned over the course of my short life: White people tend to get even crazier when they begin […]
