book review Short Story Review: Chekhov’s “Ward No. 6” as a Discourse on Privilege 23 Jul 201922 Oct 2023 Anton Chekhov's "Ward No. 6" is a long short story, almost a novella, but most of all it is a story about how the beneficiaries of privilege blind themselves to…
book review Book Review: “Life and Fate,” by Vasily Grossman 7 Jul 20198 Sep 2019 Life and Fate, by Vasily Grossman. It is no surprise that a book with perhaps the most Russian title ever--Life and Fate--weighs in at 871 pages in its English translation.…
book review Mini Review: “Lawn Boy,” by Jonathan Evison 13 Jun 201915 Jun 2019 Lawn Boy, by Jonathan Evison If you threw J. D. Salinger, Oscar Wilde, Jack London, and maybe Gerald Durrell into a blender, added a spoonful of Warhol and a dollop…
book review Mini Review: “Neon in Daylight,” by Hermione Hoby 18 May 201918 May 2019 Neon in Daylight, by Hermione Hoby I'm of two minds about this book. I enjoyed it well enough that I am glad I read it, and I do recommend it.…
book review Book Review: Anna Burns’s “Milkman” 28 Jan 201929 Jan 2019 Milkman, by Anna Burns This book shares some characteristics with Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan Quartet, which by chance I read just before picking Milkman up at the library: both explore themes…
book review Impression: The Neapolitan Quartet 2 Dec 201820 Jan 2019 The Neapolitan Quartet, by Elena Ferrante I came late to these controversial novels, but the old cliché of "Better late than never" certainly applies. I confess that I have become…
book review Book Review: “The Hidden Dimension,” by Edward T. Hall 1 Nov 20181 Nov 2018 Fortunately this book is available new or used online, as it is a valuable exploration of the way human beings in different times and cultures have interpreted and used space,…
book review Book Review: “Republic of Drivers,” by Cotton Seiler 5 Oct 201826 Oct 2023 If you're interested in the cultural matrices that make up US culture, you can't avoid studying the country's obsession with cars. Here's my review of a well-written and thorough study…