Roundup - Reluctant Habits

As the flowers bloom and the foliage returns to trees, there’s one additional sign that spring is upon us. And that’s authors engaging in spousal litigation! First, it was Terry McMillan. And now Walter Mosley is being sued by his ex-wife. None of this, of course, has any bearing on Mosley’s achievements as an author. This item is shamelessly gossipy and is only being included here because I’m hoping to draw some specious correlation between seasonal change and divorce. Perhaps existential possibilities become clearer, once the snow has let up and the time has come to boogie again in the outdoors, sans parka.
And speaking of seasonal change, Harper’s has been redesigned! (via Rarely Likable)
Circle of Quiet: “There are days when I wake up and there is a dismal curtain pulled across my soul.” I’ve had days like this too. In such instances, I trick my soul by snapping the shower curtain from its rings, shrouding the plastic raiment over my naked corpus and howling like a housebroken hound at the rising sun. This generally puts me in a more pleasant mood, although I’m pretty sure this doesn’t work for everyone. And thankfully my neighbors haven’t yet complained.
Patrick Kurp takes issue with Walt Whitman.
Tricia Sullivan, whose Maul I greatly appreciated and whose books are hard to come by here in the States, has a new book called Sound Mind. Patrick Ness reviewed it not too long ago in The Guardian. Alas, Ms. Sullivan herself has suffered a serious setback. And I include this item to inform Ms. Sullivan that she has at least one devoted reader here in America and that I am very sorry to learn of recent events.
It appears that Ian McEwan has been faced with a £2,000 fine. His digression? Grabbing some pebbles from a beach while researching On Chesil Beach. I’m relieved to learn that the Dorset authorities, apparently inspired by Singapore police tactics against Michael Fay, are going after the real criminals in our world: distinguished British authors who only wish to write accurately about Dorset. But why stop there? Imprison the jaywalkers for years! Flagellate the litterers! We must beat the heads of all dissenters, major or minor, until they understand that conformity is every citizen’s first duty.
Will Davis reveals why he must plug his book, but fails to reveal his title in his article. No wonder he’s having difficulty. (via Booksquare)
Kevin Holtsberry offers his thoughts on Alexander McCall Smith.
The Bush press team’s recent assault upon ~~Maureen~~ Matthew Dowd is disingenuous. Dowd has a son heading into Iraq and the Bush team says that this is unduly influencing his judgment.
I agree with Richard. As far as McCarthy is concerned, Mr. Asher’s taste does not resemble mine.
Anne Fernald ponders how to write a negative review.
Vulcan & Vishnu. (via Derik)
Occasional Superheroine braves the exotic territory of Buffy fan fiction.
I jumped into Rick Klaw’s ongoing tale of anthology editing at Part III, but the whole series is worth a look.
Harry Potter and Leopard Walk Up to Dragon. Wow. (via The Man Registered Under Current Patronymic Law as Ed #4,361)
A collection of cyborg birth scenes. (via Quiddity)
Will organic coffee be a thing of the past?
Alan Moore on pornography (via Warren Ellis)
Newly appointed* papa Rory Ewins has launched a new podcast.
Gingrich’s “ghetto” talk.
Personally, I like my trains fast and in French. (via MeFi)
It’s good to see that Charlie Brooker continues to show restraint in his writing.
Rockslinga: “That the NYT assigned Leon Wieseltier to review Sari Nusseibeh’s new autobiography is somewhat akin to it assigning a meat lover to review a vegetarian cookbook.”
Yo, Meghan, apples and oranges, apples and oranges. Please try again. Orthofer has more.
A hearty welcome to the litblogosphere, Dallas Morning News. (via Critical Mass)
Amy asks if there are any books or authors you can’t stand. I’m a pretty open-minded guy. I’ll read just about anything and I try to give everybody the benefit of the doubt. But I would rather tie my thumbs together with barbed wire than read anything by Chuck Klosterman or Steve Almond.

* — I understand that parents, particularly Australian parents, are appointed in Scotland.

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