Books

Book Review: Remembering “The Wrong Blood”

December 11, 2010
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Balancing the domestic and the tragic, The Wrong Blood explores the ways in which political history and personal histories intertwine: the novel is an invaluable reminder of how, in the midst of war, love and continuity preserve the potential for a richer life despite the disaster. The Wrong Blood by Manuel de Lope. Translated from…

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The Annual Arts Fuse Holiday Gift Roundup — Tips from the Experts

December 11, 2010
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With gift season comes the existential quandary: What to give the culture lovers on your list? This season the writers for The Arts Fuse waylay the crisis by recommending items that will delight the heart and stimulate the mind. Please feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments section. Keep in mind that…

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Book Review: Herman Melville and the Solace of Movement

November 28, 2010
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“Life, you see, is a lonely business . . . When there is a storm, it’s best to turn into the teeth of it. Don’t fly away, allowing an evil wind to come upon you from the stern. That’s our weakest part. We’re rib cage and metal up front. The bow is always best. Head…

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Book Interview: Sailing Through the Mind of Herman Melville

November 28, 2010
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In his novel “The Passages of H. M.: A Novel of Herman Melville” author Jay Parini combines extensive research from existing biographies with a concrete evocation of the nineteenth century writer’s world and mind. We ask the writer a few questions about Melville, and whether there would be a market for his books today. By…

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Book Review: Of Spongy Minds and Award-Winning Books

November 26, 2010
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Call it anarchistic boorishness, an artist chomping on the hand that feeds him. But at least Thomas Bernhard is honest about why he welcomes awards — he wants the money, especially because the amounts, given European largess to its culture-makers, are considerable. My Prizes: An Accounting by Thomas Bernhard. Translated from the German by Carol…

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Judicial Review #3: Gish Jen’s World and Town [Updated2x]

November 23, 2010
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Gish Jen’s novel about New England small-town life in the new millennium, “World and Town,” has just come out in a paperback. We greeted the hardback edition of the book with a Judicial Review, a fresh approach to creating a conversational, critical space about the arts. It is a good time to highlight the innovative approach again. The aim is to combine editorial integrity with the community—making power of interactivity.

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Poetry: On “Falling Back”— Six Poems Published in The New York Times Op-Ed Page

November 13, 2010
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Was Sunday, November 7th some sort of equinox? Were there sunspots? Whatever the cause, six poems, to my delight and surprise, appeared in the Op-Ed pages of The New York Times as a feature called “Falling Back.” I’d like to take this opportunity to editorialize about these six poems, five of which were penned by…

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Fuse Interview: Boston native Lydia Peelle wins 2010 Whiting Writers’ Award

October 28, 2010
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The Whiting Award winner’s short story collection is made up of tales filled with a gentle lyricism as well as a clear-eyed concern for characters stuck in “survival mode,” men and women, sheep farmers and taxidermists, who are scraping by, past their prime, or morally lost. By Bill Marx. Born in Boston and raised in…

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Book Interview: “Prejudices” Complete — The World According to H. L. Mencken

October 26, 2010
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It is our good fortune that the Library of America has decided to make H. L. Mencken’s Prejudices, a mother load of uproarious, unruly, acidic reviews and commentaries on all things American — books, music, democracy, religion, education, food, women, mores — available.

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Book Review: Classic Coming-of-Age?—The Chester Chronicles

October 24, 2010
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Kermit Moyer’s exquisitely written book, conceived with the greatest care and written with an art that conveys artlessness (the highest art of all), is a welcome addition to the American canon. The Chester Chronicles by Kermit Moyer. Permanent Press, 231 pages, $28. By Roberta Silman. As the epigraph for his first novel, Kermit Moyer quotes…

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