Clea Simon

Music Feature: “Which Side? A Protest Music Teach-out” — How Music Meets the Moment

February 22, 2026
Posted in , , , ,

The eighth iteration of “Which Side?” was a wild success, mixing musical genres from reggae to old-school Boston punk and punctuated by two moving (and brief) speakers.

Book Review: “The Copywriter” — Of Proust, Pandas, and Poetic Inertia

February 18, 2026
Posted in , ,

What stands out for this reader is the humor Daniel Poppick mines from the quotidian.

Book Review: “The Hadacol Boogie” –James Lee Burke’s Bayou Ballad of Blood and Redemption

February 10, 2026
Posted in , ,

The point of a novel like this: Life is messy, but glorious. Kind of like “The Hadacol Boogie”.

Book Review: Olga Tokarczuk’s “House of Day, House of Night” — A Demanding But Rewarding Reverie

January 27, 2026
Posted in , ,

House of Day, House of Night “is not an easy read, but for those with the stamina, it is a rewarding one, inviting us to savor its reclusive, succulent insides.”

Book Review: Medicine, Morality, and the Women of “The Double Standard Sporting House”

January 17, 2026
Posted in , ,

For those ready to make the investment, “The Double Standard Sporting House” is a fascinating look inside a complex and compelling world.

Book Review: Canceling Equality — Julia Ioffe’s Personal and Political History of Russian Women

November 13, 2025
Posted in , ,

This heartbreaking book documents the history of contemporary Russia through its women.

Book Review: “Lion Hearts” — Dan Jones Brings His Essex Dogs Saga to a Stirring Close

October 14, 2025
Posted in , ,

Novelist Dan Jones excels in re-imagining the life of common people in wartime, in particular a small group of English fighters embroiled in the so-called Hundred Years War (1337–1453) between England and France.

Book Review: “Clown Town” — Not Quite as Amusing as Expected

September 9, 2025
Posted in , ,

Mick Herron’s prose, it must be said, remains top-notch, chock full of puns and timely references, as well as colorful dialogue. But the premise of this successful series of espionage thrillers is beginning to show some wear.

Book Review: “Book of I” — A Gem of a Novel

September 7, 2025
Posted in , ,

This novel is as fresh and charming as any contemporary work this critic has read in ages.

Book Review: “The Slip” — An Epic Exploration of the Elasticity of Identity

July 10, 2025
Posted in , ,

“The Slip” raises issues of race and entitlement, as well as the malleability of identity, all in one big, sloppy, and occasionally gorgeous package.

Recent Posts

Popular Posts

Categories

Archives