It was Israel Joshua, a forceful and bold personality, who had been the trailblazer, preparing the way for the more passive and self-conscious Isaac. It was Israel Joshua who first broke with, more irrevocably than his brother, the Orthodox insularity of the family—from their father, mystical and impractical, a rabbi from a Hasidic line, and their mother, the daughter of a non-Hasidic rabbi and the so-called “rationalist” of the couple. (Via TNR)
Weekend Bites: Buddy Holly Negotiates, Boozy Writers, Shteyngart Gets Questioned, Patti Smith Podcast, A Bunch of Salinger, and More
Buddy Holly negotiates a contract. Jack London, Ernest Hemingway, Anne Sexton, and other famous literary drunks and addicts. I interviewed Gary Shteyngart over at Jewcy. He calls Isaac Bashevis Singer “nuts”. Cassettes From My Ex does Largehearted Boy’s Book Notes. Trying to get lucky? Try Goethe. Patti Smith and Rebecca Newberger Goldstein on the Book Review podcast. Remembering Salinger Dave Eggers Felicia Sullivan Salinger and the butcher. Andy Borowitz says “Hollywood Eager to Finally Fuck Up Catcher in the Rye“ […]
Kevin Sampsell/Justin Taylor: 2 Birds With One Blog Post
Over at The Faster Times, I reviewed Kevin Sampsell’s memoir, A Common Pornography. You should read the review, and then go buy the book. In case my review isn’t enough, and you haven’t read anything by Mr. Sampsell, he has a story up at Fifty-Two Stories which is presented by Harper Perennial, the publisher who put out his book. I’ll go ahead and spoil the review and tell you I absolutely loved the book, and read it back-to-back with another […]
When Oral Sex in the Shtetl Goes Horribly Wrong
Over at Tablet, a story that could be something like a b-movie, Isaac Bashevis Singer, and Pretty in Pink, all rolled into one. A young girl from the wrong side of the tracks, a guy named Feivel Goldschwartz gets engaged to a girl named Ruzhe Shulkleynot; he breaks it off because she’s poor, then she bites off half of his penis in front of a whorehouse as revenge.