Books To Jump Up and Down Over
The Call by Yannick Murphy: The always interesting author of Here They Come and Signed, Mata Hari returns with a novel that whips up a worldview from a rather quirky set of limitations: namely, the call logs that a veterinarian maintains as his son is unexpectedly put into a coma and an unforgiving economy denies him work. What emerges is a surprisingly optimistic, often funny, and very moving account on how one family uses acceptance and forgiveness as a way to atone for hard knocks. (Bat Segundo interview with Murphy)
Birds of Paradise by Diana Abu-Jaber: Forget Franzen and Eugenides. If you're looking for a social novel that counts, Diana Abu-Jaber is the author you're looking for. Building from the free-form exploration of consciousness and identity in Crescent and the gripping procedural structure of Origin, Abu-Jaber's latest novel is her finest, equally fluent with gutterpunk culture and smarmy real estate men. It has been suggested by The Washington Post's Ron Charles that you will likely gain some pounds while reading this novel. This is certainly true. Abu-Jaber's description of food is so precise that it often made me want to do more cooking. But I very much admired the way in which Abu-Jaber presents all her characters as unwitting victims of rough capitalism, which permits them some dignity even as they perform terrible acts.
The Last of the Live Nude Girls by Sheila McClear: This memoir isn't so much about the decline of the Times Square peepshow, as it is about one young woman's efforts to pull herself up by by her bootstraps when presented with few economic options. Filled with self-introspective candor and a quiet dignity, McClear's story is one that might befall any of us in these volatile times. While McClear does get back on her feet, her book leads one contemplating the terrible fates of other young women now moving to New York and falling into deadlier vocations. (Bat Segundo interview with McClear)
Archive for March, 2008
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New Podcasts
Posted on March 31, 2008 | 1 CommentApologies for the slack content here. It’s been busy. But things should be more or less back to regular prolificity tomorrow. Four more podcasts have been released at The Bat... -
Meta Meta Meta
Posted on March 27, 2008 | 2 CommentsDarby Dixon points to a troubling new trend among today’s cultural tastemakers. Today, a professional writer can now be employed to write about reading about writing or reading about writing... -
The Early Films of Jim Henson
Posted on March 25, 2008 | 2 CommentsBefore the days of Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, Jim Henson was an independent filmmaker in New York, making experimental films between commercial gigs. It was the mid-sixties. According... -
David Kamp, Blog Snob
Posted on March 24, 2008 | 11 CommentsTen years from now, we’ll all be inured to David Kamp. A whole generation will have grown up as his book, The United States of Arugula, has been long forgotten... -
NYPL: Nicholson Baker & Simon Winchester
Posted on March 21, 2008 | 3 CommentsOn Thursday night, a crowd congregated into a subterranean hall of the New York Public Library to listen to Simon Winchester interview Nicholson Baker. Mr. Baker wore a green vest... -
Growing Pains for the Litblog
Posted on March 20, 2008 | 8 CommentsAs observed yesterday by Dan Green, the Litblog Co-Op is shutting down. This is a pity, because the LBC was a remarkable conduit for many overlooked authors to receive dutiful... -
RIP Arthur C. Clarke
Posted on March 19, 2008 | 3 CommentsNobody will replace Arthur C. Clarke. Not by a long shot. The inner cylindrical mysteries of Rama. The monolith concocted in collaboration with Stanley Kubrick. The sad calculated way in... -
Obligatory Rickroll
Posted on March 18, 2008 | 2 CommentsDeadlines and other obligations are keeping me busy. Therefore, I hereby acknowledge the effective protests by Anonymous with a homegrown rickroll. -
How Drugged is That Doggie in the Window?
Posted on March 17, 2008 | 5 CommentsPretzel on Prozac By Ellen Palestrant, Elusive Press, 124pp., $12.95 It’s become pretty hip these days to put the hate on Prozac. The drug has been accused of causing suicides,... -
Human Smoke — Part Five
Posted on March 14, 2008 | 11 Comments(This concludes our roundtable discussion of Nicholson Baker’s Human Smoke. For previous installments: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four. (Many thanks to Julia Prosser at Simon &... -
Human Smoke — Part Four
Posted on March 13, 2008 | 11 Comments(This is the fourth of a five-part roundtable discussion of Nicholson Baker’s Human Smoke. For additional installments: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Five.) Jackson West writes: I dithered... -
Human Smoke — Part Three
Posted on March 12, 2008 | 9 Comments(This is the third of a five-part roundtable discussion on Nicholson Baker’s Human Smoke. For additional installments: Part One, Part Two, Part Four, Part Five.) Colleen Mondor writes: Levi –... -
Human Smoke — Part Two
Posted on March 11, 2008 | 9 Comments(This is the second of a five-part roundtable discussion of Nicholson Baker’s Human Smoke. For additional installments: Part One, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five.) Colleen Mondor writes: Hi all... -
Human Smoke — Part One
Posted on March 9, 2008 | 12 Comments(This is the first of a five-part roundtable discussion of Nicholson Baker’s Human Smoke. For additional installments: Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part Five.) Nicholson Baker’s latest book,... -
Cinematic Authenticity
Posted on March 7, 2008 | 2 CommentsTwo movies opening today have me concerned about the way that contemporary cinema is avoiding authenticity in an age of wartime. If we accept the idea that a movie is,... -
Momentary Hiatus
Posted on March 4, 2008 | 1 CommentDue to other deadlines, I’m taking a few days off. Four new podcasts are up at the Bat Segundo Show. More soon! -
Interview with Bill Plympton
Posted on March 3, 2008 | 2 CommentsI’m currently putting the finishing touches on a number of new podcasts, which I anticipate releasing today. But in the meantime, here’s an excerpt from my forthcoming interview with animator...