Despite the fame of Alison Krauss, women bluegrass performers have been rare. The arrival of the all-female quintet Uncle Earl suggests things are going to change.
Bound to be Beautiful
For some contemporary artists, the traditional idea of the book as paper and ink is up for grabs as was shown at a conference at Wellesley College
Cosmic Cloak and Dagger
Spanish literary phenomenon Javier Marias has come up with a spy novel that is more concerned with a theoretical investigation of truth, trust, and betrayal than with cloak and dagger spying.
Book Review: Clones R Us
Kazuo Ishiguro’s latest novel explores a future that’s already happened. “Never Let Me Go” by Kazuo Ishiguro. (Knopf) By Liza Weisstuch In the popular imagination, science fiction novels are supposed to be set in the future, anywhere from two years ahead to centuries. Often, these stories ruminate on how the latest technology changes humanity and […]
Perfectly Picaresque
The Decemberists’ album offers a lineup of tunes that would soothe Shakespeare on a balmy evening.
Classical Music Commentary: Past Imperfect
Old recordings of classical music may have less to teach us than many critics think. By Mark Kroll It has been more than 100 years since the first wax cylinder scratched out a reproduction of someone screaming into a megaphone, but classical music recordings still “can’t get no respect.” A common lament has been that, […]
Visual Arts Review: Cartoon Memoirist
By Milo Miles Iranian expatriate Marjane Satrapi continues to expand the art of the comic book. Back in the ’40s, the long-standing prejudice that comic books were incapable of presenting serious, adult matters was exploded by such artists as Bernie Krigstein, Harvey Kurtzman, and Will Eisner. But the discovery of how just how uniquely valuable […]
Book Review: China’s Surreal Corruption
A new novel by a Chinese dissident provides a comically stinging vision of his homeland.
Book Review: The Fame Game
In this moving memoir, the daughter of celebrated psychologist Erik Erikson meditates on how fame and ego shatter the foundations of family life. “In the Shadow of Fame: A Memoir by the Daughter of Erik H. Erikson” by Sue Erikson Bloland. (Viking) By Debbie Porter Sometimes, the lives of the famous resemble fairy tales: an […]
Book Review: “The Swimmer” — Wading Through the Ripples of History
By Tess Lewis A new novel captures the atmosphere of post-1956 Hungary from a child’s point of view. The Swimmer by Zsuzsa Bank. Translated from the German by Margot Bettauer Dembo. (Harcourt Books) In tales of exile, the stories of those left behind are rarely told. This is hardly surprising because the abandoned, when they […]