Books

Poetry Review: “It’s Like That If You’re Alive” — The Poetry of Tone Škrjanec

March 6, 2015
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Looking deeply into things and, by no means least of all, into other human beings implies meditating on brevity, on ephemerality—and this is what Tone Škrjanec does in this book.

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Book Review: Ned Beauman’s Unconventional “Glow”

March 6, 2015
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Glow is a witty, accessible, but at times overly ambitious journey through the world of exotic drugs, the chemistry of romance, and the insidious effects of globalization.

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Book Review: Colm Tóibin On Elizabeth Bishop

March 5, 2015
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In some essential and large way, novelist Colm Tóibin gets Elizabeth Bishop right.

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Book Review: “Medieval Christianity” — All Too Human

February 28, 2015
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Harvard Divinity School professor Kevin Madigan’s scholarly but always compelling exposition of the evolution of the church will spark introspection among practicing Christians.

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Book Review: At the Opaque Heart of Life — The Short Stories of Sait Faik

February 27, 2015
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Sometimes called the “Turkish Balzac” and, more often, the “Turkish Chekhov,” Sait Faik actually had a literary vision all his own.

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Poetry Review: “Breathturn into Timestead” — A Magnificent Guide to the Enigmatic Poetry of Paul Celan

February 25, 2015
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Once you have wrestled with Paul Celan’s poetry, you may find yourself with a changed and sharpened sensibility to image and language.

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Book Review: “Curtains?” — Grim But Valuable Truths about the Future of the Arts in America.

February 24, 2015
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Curtains? is not entirely satisfying, but I’ll give Michael M. Kaiser points for honesty, clarity, and for not dodging uncomfortable truths.

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Arts Interview: America’s Arts Economy — Future Tragically Imperfect

February 23, 2015
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Over the next two decades, slow-creeping climate change is coming to the arts in America — the arctic ice on which the creative class stands is melting.

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Book Review: “A Brief Stop on the Road From Auschwitz” — Destined to Become a Classic

February 23, 2015
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Göran Rosenberg has written a calm yet passionate account of events after Auschwitz, a memoir marked by great intelligence and equally great emotional intensity.

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Fuse Book Commentary: Found in Translation — Out in the ‘Burbs

February 21, 2015
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Every writer fantasizes about passionate readers. These were as passionate as they come.

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