Jun 8, 2021Hysteria for the Area: A review, meaning a pan, of Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeerDay, I mean page, 1. I keep this journal as a record of my reading Annihilation so that those who consider plunging into this novel, meaning word-smear, will be forewarned and perhaps learn from my error. …Literature7 min read
May 12, 2021Days of the Lepus: Circling around Rabbit, Run by John UpdikeIn an early review of Rabbit, Run David Boroff of The New York Times wrote, “The author’s style is particularly impressive; artful and supple, its brilliance is belied by its relaxed rhythms. Mr. Updike has a knack of tilting his observations just a little, so that even a commonplace phrase…Literatura15 min read
Apr 18, 2021Not a Review of Freedom by Jonathan FranzenOn some website Jonathan Franzen says two of his favorite books are Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Desperate Characters by Paula Fox (1970). Franzen’s novel Freedom has a couple references to Gatsby and Franzen’s last chapter begins with the rumored death of a cat, recall that Fox’s book starts with…Novel11 min read
Mar 18, 2021The Stepford Scouts: An Analysis of Beyond the Easel by Norman RockwellNorman Rockwell’s illustration Beyond the Easel (BTE) is a strange image. First it is a portrait of the artist as an old man, and as a scout dignitary or leader. From what I read, Rockwell was never a member of the Boy Scouts, (I can’t make sense of the writing…Art13 min read
Jan 27, 2021The Psychopathology of Hating TrumpLet’s be realists for a moment.People voted against Donald Trump did so because of and only because of personality. They’ll claim they voted against what Trump did (not really a viable defense in 2016 because he hadn’t been in office yet). They know this. They know their vote was only…Trump5 min read
Jan 25, 2021Icky Writing About Ichthy-Anthrops: A review of The Sunken Land Begins To Rise Again by M. John HarrisonThe 16th Century writer John Lyly wrote in his book Euphues — An Anatomy of Wit, “Fish and guests in three days are stale,” which Benjamin Franklin turned into “Fish, like guests, begin to smell after three days.” …Novel11 min read
Jan 2, 2021The Disease of Humanity and of Lenses: A review of A Burnt-Out Case by Graham GreeneFilm footage exists of Graham Greene when he visited what was then known as The Belgian Congo. He sits on a cheap deck chair, legs crossed, the lower ankle bent so the side of his foot rests on the ground. He reads. Greene visited in 1959, arriving at what is…Novel13 min read
Dec 17, 2020“The student retention committee should formulate a plan to increase retention.” A review of as much as I could take of Jill Biden’s Ed.D paper.I was interested in the media frenzy about this document (I’m loathe to call it a dissertation) and so I looked it up. There are two litmuses that I use when first considering a thesis, exegesis, or dissertation: I look for a clear research question and I check methodology. What…Biden7 min read
Nov 26, 2020Hyperventilating over the Present: A review of the Introduction to Hypermodernity and the End of the WorldI’ve obtained a copy of a strange book independently published by John Ebert, Brian Culkin (and with a preface by Michael Kamins) that stylistically aligns with many books I’ve run across lately, in that I find them more confusing and exasperating than edifying. I suspect these projects are written by…Accelerationism18 min read
Nov 8, 2020Noxious, Machinic Despotism: A review of The Fall of Colossus by D.F. JonesThe all powerful AI conceptualized for a transhuman future in book one that I reviewed here now promotes posthuman desires in book two, The Fall of Colossus, and we wonder about the shift since Colossus offers neither human emotions nor altruism. Why we ask does Colossus even retain an Earth…Literatura9 min read