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Book Review: “The Dream Merchant” — Gambling with Power and Possibility

April 20, 2013
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Part of what made “The Dream Merchant” so compelling, and at times, harrowing, a read for me are its themes: love, loss, rags and riches, to be sure, but also the theme of aging, and associated loss of power and possibility.

Book Review: “The Virtues of Poetry” — Fascinating But Frustrating

April 20, 2013
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James Longenbach’s ear for the nuances of diction, tone, stress, and the material aspects of poetry is so good, and his grasp of context and biography so assured, one wonders why the essays so often tie themselves into semantic and logical knots.

Book Review: Females on the Frontier of Medicine — Healers in Early Modern Germany

April 19, 2013
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In her groundbreaking study, Tufts University professor Alisha Rankin essentially revises the history of medicine by showing that women, presumed to be marginal in the development early modern medicine, were actually major players.

Theater Review: “She Kills Monsters” — A Delightful Celebration of Geekery

April 18, 2013
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“She Kills Monsters” provides a constant stream of creative, amusing, and outrageous moments.

Book Review: A House of Many Doors — Gish Jen’s Tiger Writing

April 17, 2013
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Moving restlessly between independence and interdependence in style and content, the lecture captures the changeling quality that Gish Jen associates with those who must creatively manage multiple cultural influences.

Book Review: “The Wanting” — Ambitious and Audacious Fiction about the Middle East

April 16, 2013
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There are so many characters to root for in “The Wanting” that you tend to read with your head swimming, and with an increasing sense of urgency as the senseless is revealed to have a logic of its own.

Jazz Review: Chris Thile and Brad Mehldau At The Berklee Performance Center

April 16, 2013
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The wizards of mandolin and jazz piano were in perfect sync, blending styles and breaking barriers.

Fuse Concert Review: Michael McHale and the Discovery Ensemble/Courtney Lewis

April 15, 2013
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Sunday’s concert had the Discovery Ensemble and conductor Courtney Lewis playing with uncommon vigor and focus: this was one of the most exciting symphonic performances that any local orchestra has given this season.

Fuse Commentary: What Does the End of Newspapers Mean for the Arts in Boston?

April 15, 2013
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Recent changes in Boston’s media landscape do not bode well for substantial coverage of the arts. What do those in the arts world think about what is happening?

Poetry Review: A Profound Respect for Place — Iraq and the Merrimack Valley

April 14, 2013
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David Allen Sullivan has no combat experience here or abroad, but his verse offers a poignant vision of the sights, sounds, and passions of the Iraq War. Matt Kraunelis replicates the landscapes of his hometown, planting the reader’s feet firmly in the Merrimack Valley.

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