AltWeeklies Wire
ZZ Packer's New Short Fiction Challenges Old Notions of Identitynew
It’s a tangle Packer addresses when she marks the border between the “Southerners” and “southerners.”
“Southerners, in full possession of that capital ‘S,’ stroll through life with an unassailable sense of right and wrong,” she writes. “Right: chicken-fried steak, Jesus, zero taxation; wrong: vegetarianism, psychiatry, Birkenstocks. The ‘southerner,’ lowercase, does not stroll so much as simper.”
Charleston City Paper |
Jon Santiago |
09-04-2008 |
Fiction
'Blue Dixie' Explodes Political Myths About the South, Perpetuates Othersnew
Conventional wisdom holds that the South is a solid GOP bloc, lost to Democrats forever, with a single stroke of LBJ's pen. But like most unchallenged "truths," this one is nothing but a media-generated myth that has had dire consequences for the democratic process.
Charleston City Paper |
Dylan Hales |
09-04-2008 |
Nonfiction
That '70s Essay: Or, Where Did We Think We'd End Up After 30 Years of Denial?new
Conventional wisdom holds that if you lose something important, it's prudent to retrace your steps. And there's a bumper crop of books on the shelves right now examining exactly that: What we lost, as a nation, somewhere between the latter half of the 20th century and today.
Charleston City Paper |
Jason A. Zwiker |
09-03-2008 |
Nonfiction
A Thin New Book Builds a Thin, Old Case Against the Chemical Industrynew
Nena Baker, a former investigative reporter for The Oregonian, has written a slim volume about toxins in the environment that builds an even slimmer case against the chemical industry.
Willamette Week |
Matt Buckingham |
09-03-2008 |
Nonfiction
Slavoj Zizek on 'Violence'new
In this book, he argues that in addition to the “subjective” violence we normally associate with the term (backstabbing, slap fights, waterboarding), there is an additional “objective” violence inscribed into our language and politics.
Willamette Week |
Staff |
09-03-2008 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Tags: violence, Slavoj Zizek
Why is Andrew Pyper Wasting His Time on Thrillers?new
The bestselling Toronto author, who won the Arthur Ellis Award for best first novel, has immense talent, but you get the feeling he's taking the easy route churning out whodunits.
NOW Magazine |
Susan G. Cole |
09-02-2008 |
Fiction
Getting Under the Hood of James Wood's New Fiction Manifestonew
The critical response can only be personal, which is why critics have had so much fun reviewing this earnest, intelligent and cranky little book. The problem with the overambitious title is easily solved by adding a simple preposition between title and author: How Fiction Works For James Wood.
New Haven Advocate |
Jolisa Gracewood |
09-02-2008 |
Nonfiction
A Book About What Your Stuff Says About You Doesn't Reveal Enoughnew
Gosling's concept in Snoop is pretty darn alluring: By carefully observing all the seemingly inconsequential bric-a-brac around a person, you can gain valuable insights into his personality.
Baltimore City Paper |
Joab Jackson |
09-02-2008 |
Nonfiction
Detroit's African-American Writers, Playwrights and Poets Get a Space of Their Ownnew
The development of the African American Literature Special Collection at Wayne State University's Purdy-Kresge Library began in April 2005, when Assistant Dean and Development Director Barton Lessin was approached by Don Vest, co-owner of Broadside Press.
Metro Times |
Norene Cashen |
09-02-2008 |
Books
A Vienna Beef Veep Publishes a Tribute to the People Who Sell the Productnew
Bob Schwartz's soon-to-be-released book, Never Put Ketchup on a Hot Dog, is a nostalgic tribute to Chicago's hot dog stands.
Chicago Reader |
Mike Sula |
09-02-2008 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Disaster: A Growth Industrynew
Klein exposes—with razor-sharp investigative reporting—the damage done by the fundamentalist economic theories of Nobel Prize winner Milton Friedman, who said: “Only a crises actual or perceived produces real change.”
Jackson Free Press |
Ronni Mott |
08-29-2008 |
Nonfiction
New Roman Polanski Bio Goes for Glitz, Not Glorynew
Christopher Sandford's Polanski: A Biography may inspire that peculiar twinge of uber-humility that occasions tales of paraplegic mountain climbers and crack babies metamorphosed into Harvard grads. It's hard to call what the average Jarek does "living" when you stack it next to the full-color epic of Polanski.
New York Press |
Felicia Feaster |
08-29-2008 |
Nonfiction
P.J. Bracegirdle Gets Spooky in 'Fiendish Deeds'new
The book business has been buzzing like vultures over the fact that 9–12 year olds is the only demographic where reading is on the increase. Bracegirdle (his real name) is a witty, intelligent voice that reads like a not so bloodless Lemony Snicket.
Montreal Mirror |
Juliet Waters |
08-29-2008 |
Fiction
Can Toy Styles Dominate the Cutthroat World of Street Lit?new
Styles has written two novels for Triple Crown Publications, one of the bigger names in the pulpy, erotic, and violent world of urban fiction, and a dominating force in the "African-American Literature" section of chain bookstores. Last November, though, Styles decided to strike out on her own and start her own house.
Washington City Paper |
Ruth Samuelson |
08-29-2008 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
DC's Comic Series 'Trinity' Remains Addictivenew
As addictive as Trinity can be, this is one continuity-laden comic. Honestly, I'll probably keep reading it -- but I'll read it and weep. I'm a glutton for punishment, I guess.
Creative Loafing (Charlotte) |
Carlton Hargro |
08-27-2008 |
Fiction
