Between the Angle and the Curve: Mapping Gender, Race, Space, and Identity in Willa Cather and Toni Morrison
Open Culture (Free subscription) | 11/24/2009
The talk above is the first of 26 lectures making up a free Yale course called “The American Novel Since 1945.” Taught by Amy Hungerford, the course introduces you to the novels of America’s finest post-war writers -- Nabokov (émigré), Salinger, Keroauc and Pynchon, and also Philip Roth, Toni Morrison, Cormac McCarthy and Jonathan Safran [...]
TwoMindsFull (Free subscription) | 11/22/2009
Dear Oprah: We don't sing karaoke or dance with the stars. We have been contributing to the cultural landscape long before Jon & Kate, Britney,Rhianna and Chris or Stephanie Meyer and most of America, including you have probably never even heard of us. We have railed against Kanye's proud pronouncement upon the publication of his 52 page book: Thank You and You're Welcome, that "I am not a...
NewBlackMan (Free subscription) | 11/22/2009
Oprah Winfrey announced that she will be ending her popular talk show in 2011, after 25 years on the air. Though the program made Winfrey one of the most visible and wealthy women in the world, some thought her little more than a post-modern “mammy. ” *** Post-Modern Mammy': The Oprah Legacy By Mark Anthony Neal Talk show host and media mogul Oprah Winfrey announced that she will end her...
Naki (Free subscription) | 11/21/2009
Dear Oprah: We don't sing karaoke or dance with the stars. We have been contributing to the cultural landscape long before Jon & Kate, Britney,Rhianna and Chris or Stephanie Meyer and most of America, including you have probably never even heard of us. We have railed against Kanye's proud pronouncement upon the publication of his 52 page book: Thank You and You're Welcome, that "I am not a...
Visions of Paradise (Free subscription) | 11/21/2009
This is the fifth time I’ve picked my favorite books of the preceding decade, and I cannot help but wonder how many more chances I will have to do so in the future? Twice more? Three times perhaps? Scary thoughts. Before I begin, here is a brief review of my selections from past decades: The 1960s: Best Novel : Lord of Light / Roger Zelazny Best Short Fiction : The Star Pit / Samuel R. Delany...
What's Left in the Church (Free subscription) | 11/21/2009
N.B.: This is a far more thoughtful response to Feodor's complaint about my remarks concerning Marcel Proust. If this doesn't satisfy him, well, I'll buy him a subscription to Dissent. One point George Scialabba made last evening with which I profoundly disagree (for obvious reasons) is the effect of the internet on literacy . I find this odd, in particular, since so much of what happens on the internet...
BrontëBlog (Free subscription) | 11/21/2009
More scholar books with Brontë mentions: The Female Gothic New Directions Edited by Diana Wallace and Andrew Smith Palgrave Macmillan 12 Nov 2009 9780230222717 240 pages This rich and varied collection of essays makes a timely contribution to critical debates about the Female Gothic, a popular but contested area of literary studies. The contributors revisit key Gothic themes - gender, race, the...
Opinion Dominion (Free subscription) | 11/17/2009
Jason Zinoman on Robert Mckee | vanityfair.com Jason Zinoman, who has a particular interest in horror films, reports on his attendance at a screenwriters seminar held by the famous screenwriting teacher Robert McKee. McKee comes across as a bit of a jerk who wings it on browbeating self-confidence. Here's Jason's summary of how to replicate McKee's technique: Rule One: Drop names shamelessly. McKee...
Isak (Free subscription) | 11/13/2009
If you're not reading it already, there's a fascinating discussion going on over at Racialicious about African American literature and what may be, or may not be, disproportionate attention and acclaim for narratives that highlight horrible abuse and disfunction, as if that is the one "real" story. Discussed: Push, "Precious," and Percival Everett... for starters. Also, street lit,...
Secondhand Smoking Jacks (Free subscription) | 11/12/2009
Here are the books my book club selected for the 2009-2010 year: Nov: The Emperor's Children, Claire Messud Dec: Sula, Toni Morrison Jan: Dracula, Bram Stoker (in the designated slot for a classic) Feb: Dreamers of the Day, Mary Doria Russell Mar: Bel Canto, Ann Patchett Apr: Three Novels: Nathan + two others, Wendell Berry May: Unaccustomed Earth, Jhumpa Lahiri June: The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, David...
The Guardian Books Blog (Free subscription) | 11/12/2009
Fox News's champion hatemonger has become a potent force in publishing In many ways Glenn Beck is the anti-Oprah. While her show is the televisual equivalent of a soft embrace, his Fox News slot is Orwell's Two Minutes Hate on steroids, an almost literal call to arms, preying on fear and relying on patriot bombast. One fought to get Barack Obama elected, the other thinks he's a dangerous, racist radical...
LisNews (Free subscription) | 11/07/2009
Read Me: A Century of Classic American Book Advertisements This witty and heavily illustrated volume features more than 300 vintage book advertisements—startling and strange, beautiful and funny—that together reveal a kind of secret history of American literature over the last century. New York Times book critic Dwight Garner brings together original ads for some of the most acclaimed...
the Literary Saloon (Free subscription) | 11/06/2009
What a surprise: the Wall Street Journal (well, Juan Williams, writing there) finds there's: 'Precious' Little of Value in Ghetto Lit . This is apparently: "the fastest-growing segment of African-American letters, a genre called "ghetto lit" or "gangster lit."" (This claim seems anecdotal rather than factual; I'd love to see the numbers (and definitions ...).) Anyway,...
Isak (Free subscription) | 11/04/2009
Novelist Carleen Brice has started a website with a hilarious, but very valid premise. She says what's what in the current issue of Poets & Writers: ... it's hard for anyone--of any color--to make it as a novelist without the support of a wide audience, which for black authors, means the support of white folks. That's why I a black author, started the blog White Readers Meet Black Authors ... Whether...
Literanista (Free subscription) | 11/03/2009
Love this: EDWIDGE DANTICAT Age: 40 Hometown: Port-au-Prince, Haiti Current Location: Miami, FL Occupation: Writer 1. What four adjectives would your first best friend use to describe you? Funny, neurotic, sensitive and, I hope, kind 2. What dish do you make well? Rice and beans 3. What was your favorite song when you were in high school? “It's Raining Men” by The Weather Girls 4. What...
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