Books

Book Review: “How 1984 Became Pop’s Blockbuster Year”

January 5, 2021
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Music fans who miss, or missed, the long party that was mainstream music in the mid-’80s will be skillfully taken back to fast times in Can’t Slow Down.

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Book Review: “I Died a Million Times” — Upwardly Mobile in Film Noir

January 5, 2021
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I Died a Million Times is an enjoyable and informative read for film noir aficionados and casual movie fans alike, offering a cogent analysis of ’50s gangster noir as a cinema of social commentary.

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Book Review: “Desert Oracle” — Dwelling on the Fringe

January 3, 2021
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Desert Oracle is an omnibus, a kind of hand drawn map, as well as a bit of a crackup — something you will peruse and possibly find the route leading to a deeper dive.

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Book Review: “Savage Kiss” — Children’s Criminal Crusade

January 2, 2021
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Maybe the greatest value of Saviano’s narratives is that they rebuke the complicity of silence; they are acts of dissent that refuse to kowtow to the oppressive omertà.

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Book Review: “This Isn’t Happening: Radiohead’s “Kid A”” — An Enduring Soundtrack for our Malaise

December 24, 2020
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Steven Hyden’s ,/em>This Isn’t Happening, a book-length appreciation of Radiohead and Kid A is one of the best books I read all year.

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Book Review: “This Is Bop” — A Biography of Jon Hendricks, Master of Vocalese

December 22, 2020
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This biography provides a solid look at Jon Hendricks’s life and career; a well-rounded picture that is neither a hagiography nor a hatchet job.

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Book Review: Colum McCann’s “Apeirogon” — Showing a Path Forward

December 21, 2020
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Although some of Apeirogon is painful, this novel can inspire you to think differently and even to act, which is surely welcome after this horrible year in which we have all felt so helpless.

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Arts Feature: Recommended Books, 2020

December 20, 2020
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An eclectic round-up of the favorite books of the year from our critics.

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Book Review: Anahid Nersessian’s “Keats’s Odes: A Lover’s Discourse” — More like a Quarrel

December 17, 2020
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Anahid Nersessian claims that her book is a kind of love story between her and Keats’ odes. But it turns out we have to take her word for that. Too often this study comes off like an acrimonious couple’s counseling session.

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Book Review: “Buy Me Boston, Volume 2” — Celebration of Advertisements Past

December 16, 2020
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Flipping through this volume will help readers understand just how much the internet and consumer technology has changed the world of arts and culture.

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