Names, Thrills, and Sociopaths: Tom Lutz on Writing “Born Slippy”

Tom Lutz

Earlier this year, I interviewed writer Tom Lutz at the Strand. The occasion was the release of his new novel Born Slippy, the story of two men — Frank, a self-taught carpenter, and Dmitry, an ambitious and amoral figure — whose paths cross again and again over the years. What begins as a wry character study slowly becomes a moral thriller along the lines of Graham Greene, making for a thrilling read. Before our event, I spoke with Lutz at a nearby coffee shop about his novel’s genesis, his work with the Los Angeles Review of Books, and more.

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In Search of Whatever: On Rob Spillman’s “All Tomorrow’s Parties”

I’m not sure if Americans being reluctant to get out and see more of the country and world is strictly a post 9/11 thing, like we’re not safe here, but we’re way less safe anywhere else, or if it’s always been this way. All I know is that I don’t see that many great books about stepping out of your comfort zone and into the back of a car or hiking for miles. There are glimmering examples, memoirs that have […]

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Afternoon Bites: Phil Collins at The Alamo, “Lost Novels” Considered, Sarah Leavitt’s Memoir, and More

Phil Collins on the Alamo, in The New Yorker. Maggie Serota on Duff McKagan’s memoir. Carolyn Kellogg on Sarah Leavitt’s graphic memoir Tangles. Merve Emre looks at Jack Kerouac’s The Sea Is My Brother and the concept of the “lost novel.” Maud Newton on the Paper app for the iPad. Jami Attenberg went outlet shopping. Follow Vol. 1 Brooklyn on Twitter, Facebook, Google + and our Tumblr.

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Afternoon Bites: Songs About Steinbeck, Rules From Kerouac, Heidi Julavits Interviewed, And More

“Be crazy dumbsaint of the mind” Hey, it’s the Jack Kerouac guide to life (and also to prose). At Capital New York, Jacob Silverman talks to Heidi Julavits. “What I was coming to understand, though, was that my mother did not come into the world fully formed in 1981, when I was born, that there was a complicated and somehow painful life that predated me.” Elisabeth Donnelly on watching Mad Men with her mother. Anthology Film Archives is hosting a […]

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William F. Buckley Died On This Day

William F. Buckley died on this day in 2008.  Posting about him is no way to excuse the fact that he was a Joseph McCarthy apologist, that he held bigoted views against homosexuals that would make Rick Santorum blush with delight, was one of the key players in getting Ronald Reagan elected, and a myriad of other inexcusable views and statements.

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