Rake’s Progress: “RP introduces a new feature today called Care For A Mulligan? Here, your pal will pull out a piece of criticism and kindly ask if the critic, on second glance, would care to have another crack at it. It’s Gentleman’s Snark.”
Year / 2006
It’s Official: Klosterman Just As Whiny as Franzen
Popmatters: “The one thing that has always bothered me about the Charlie Brown Christmas special is that the other kids never admit to Charlie Brown that he was right about the little tree.”
Look at it this way, at least he didn’t publish in The New Yorker and a book. Then again, I suppose we can look forward to Klosterman V: Paragraphs I Wrote While on the Can.
I hereby adopt a new writing axiom: When a male essayist starts looking to Peanuts for a desperate introspective connection (instead of, say, the fascinating people around him), he’s gone well over the edge of needlessly confessional neuroses and must be stopped at all costs.
How Amateurs Turn Pro Overnight
Jurassic Libel
You have to hand it to Michael Crichton. Just when you think he’s hit the nadir, he somehow manages to slide down further into the morass.
Talking Points Muckraker points to this latest item. Earlier this year, Michael Crowley wrote an article criticizing Crichton’s stance on global warming. So what did Crichton do? Instead of engaging Crowley on his issues, he’s included a character in his next novel, Next, named “Mick Crowley” a child molester with a small penis.
Roundup from No Particular Declivity
- Who knew that bookstores were the place for exclusive pretzels? (via Jennifer Howard, who has been turning in some fine guest blogging at Bookslut this week)
- When writing a literary biography, be sure to befriend your subject’s ex-spouses.
- Romancing the Tome has some hot pics of The Golden Age, the sequel 1998’s amazing film Elizabeth. The sequel, thankfully, will also be written by Michael Hirst and directed by Shekhar Kapur. And, of course, it’s Blanchettlicious*, with Clive Owen appearing as Sir Walter Raleigh.
- I never thought I’d see the day when Michiko Kakutani was compared with Darth Vader. I’m guessing that nutty Brockman guy is steeling himself up for a holiday party.
- The Washington Post‘s Jabari Asim argues that what McEwan did is no less different from LL Cool J sampling James Brown.
- C. Max Magee asked me to particpate in his impressive “A Year in Reading” project and my contribution can be found here. My top ten list for 2006 will appear after Xmas.
- The Written Nerd writes about the current state of NYC bookstores. Prognosis: nicht so guht.
- Is literary paradise in Australia lost? (via MAO)
- Sarah offers some further speculation on Bertelsmann’s precarious financial status. An $11.2 billion debt. I’d hate to be on the receiving end of that dunning. Even if Random House isn’t purchased by Google, I’m wondering who else but Google would be willing to take a hit with that kind of debt, if Bertlesmann decides to shop off Random House.
- I wish I could go to this, but I’ll be in San Francisco. MetaxuCafe is having a gathering on December 19. Check it out if you’re in New York.
- 10 Zen Monkeys looks into the Amanda Congdon-ABC partnership.
* — It is my hope to introduce “Blanchettlicious” into common vernacular. The term signifies someone “exuding smart and sexy” and I’m hoping it can replace such general monosyllabic terms such as “hot” that fail to do justice to the sublime complexities of women.