Books

Book Review: “Do Not Sell at Any Price” — A Delightful Book on Those Who Collect Vintage 78 rpm Records

August 15, 2014
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I like to believe that I’m not loony, that, unlike certain 78 collectors profiled by Amanda Petrusich, I have a perspective on all this.

Book Review: The Absurdity of Living in the Space Between — “Elsewhere” by Doron Rabinovici

August 7, 2014
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Elsewhere is a tragicomic work, its plethora of absurd coincidences an attempt to portray the senseless plight of the post-postmodern man.

Book Review: An Evocative Biography of Zionist Agitator and Writer Vladmir Jabotinsky

July 27, 2014
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There’s room to wonder if Vladmir Jabotinsky would have accepted Menachem Begin, Ariel Sharon and Benjamin Netanyahu as his legitimate Zionist heirs.

Book Review: Know When to Fold ’em — Colson Whitehead Explores “The Noble Hustle”

July 24, 2014
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The Noble Hustle gives talented novelist Colson Whitehead an opportunity to spelunk in some of the gnarlier corners of the American dream, in this case the Tropicana in Atlantic City.

Book Review: “The Shelf”‘s Splendid Ambition — to Burst Open the Literary Canon

July 23, 2014
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Like me, Phyllis Rose frets about the zillion fine books out there that nobody bothers with. Why their neglect? She reasons that it’s because no one pedigreed has championed them.

Book Review: “A Replacement Life” — Russian Immigrants in America, Depicted with Exuberance

July 18, 2014
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A Replacement Life explores what America means to Russian immigrants whose cunning and sophistication often lead them into trouble.

Book Review: “The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair” — Beware the Hype

July 15, 2014
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The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair is a long but fast-paced book that walks the line between airport novel and true work of literary fiction.

Book Review: “Little Failure” — Gary Shteyngart’s Memoir is Amusing But Thin

July 14, 2014
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Gary Shteyngart’s memoir proffers the rhetorical zest and caustic wit of his novels, but it lacks their satiric edge.

Book Review: “Becoming a Londoner” — A Record of a Charmed Life or A Life Made Charming

July 14, 2014
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David Plante’s non-fiction and fiction are of a piece. There is the honesty of a writer who is willing and able to, first, face himself, then, write what he sees, and then, allow the world to see his seeing.

Book Review: In “Europe in Sepia,” Croatian Writer Dubravka Ugrešić Bets a Few Chips on the Future

July 8, 2014
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Translator David Williams has hit upon a judicious combination of snappy repartee and dark underbelly that communicates essayist Dubravka Ugrešić’s rapier wit and black despair in equal measure.

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