Commonplace Book: Coriolanus and the mob
“With every minute you change a mind,
And call him noble that was now your hate,
Him vile that was your garland.” Continue reading Commonplace Book: Coriolanus and the mob
Critic’s Notebook: The Wake without training wheels
Jack Burton: I don’t get this at all. I thought Lo Pan— David Lo Pan: Shut up, Mr. Burton! You were not brought upon this world to “get it!” Big Trouble in Little China (John Carpenter, 1986) Earlier in my life, I read Dubliners, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, and Ulysses, all by James Joyce. This year I decided to read Finnegans Wake, a novel notorious for its inaccessibility. Like The Cantos by Ezra Pound, it is a text many know, few read, and less understand. While the Wake is difficult, this shouldn’t be seen as a … Continue reading Critic’s Notebook: The Wake without training wheels
TOP THREE: Finnegans Wake vs Pop Culture: NUMBER ONE: Don King on Late Night with Conan O’Brien
“Does not the sheer splendubious celebretacity of this most merrilous time warm the Gaelic cockles of your potato eating heart?” Continue reading TOP THREE: Finnegans Wake vs Pop Culture: NUMBER ONE: Don King on Late Night with Conan O’Brien
TOP THREE: Finnegans Wake vs Pop Culture: NUMBER TWO: On Language, by Fry and Laurie
“EXtrinsicly! EXtrinsicly! EXtrinsicly!” Continue reading TOP THREE: Finnegans Wake vs Pop Culture: NUMBER TWO: On Language, by Fry and Laurie
TOP THREE: Finnegans Wake vs Pop Culture: NUMBER THREE: George Carlin is a Modern Man
“I’m an alpha male on beta blockers.” Continue reading TOP THREE: Finnegans Wake vs Pop Culture: NUMBER THREE: George Carlin is a Modern Man
The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America, by Anita Hannig @ NYJB
“The Day I Die is an informative and accessible addition to the literature of death and dying. Hannig, as an anthropologist, explores the various roadblocks and challenges facing individuals who seek to die with dignity.” Continue reading The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America, by Anita Hannig @ NYJB
Commonplace Book: John Ashbery, Prophet
“They were living in America pandemically.” Continue reading Commonplace Book: John Ashbery, Prophet
Monday with the Supremes: When Freedom Speaks, by Lynn Greenky @ NYJB
“When Freedom Speaks by Lynn Greenky is an excellent introduction and exploration of the contentious field of First Amendment jurisprudence. Both entertaining and educational, it provides the knowledge necessary for an informed electorate.” Continue reading Monday with the Supremes: When Freedom Speaks, by Lynn Greenky @ NYJB
Commonplace Book: The Soldier’s Tear
Compelling passages, notable quotables, bon mots, disjecta, ephemera, and miscellany. Upon a hill he turned, To take a last fond look Of the valley and the village church, And the cottage by the brook. He listened to the sounds So familiar to the ear, And the soldier leant upon his sword And wiped away a tear. … He turned and left the spot, Oh! do not deem him weak, For dauntless was the soldier’s heart, Tho’ tears were on his cheek. Go watch the foremost ranks, In danger’s dark career. Be sure the hand most daring there Has wiped away … Continue reading Commonplace Book: The Soldier’s Tear
The Spring, by Annie Connole @nyjb
“Throughout The Spring, Connole’s experience of grief, translated into prose and photographs, creates a spare, rugged alchemy.” Continue reading The Spring, by Annie Connole @nyjb
The Driftless Area Review 