In our afternoon reading: an interview with Leif Enger, writing from Chiwan Choi and Devin Kelly, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Blake Butler on the Clarice Lispector Reissues, John Hodgman Talks Superheroes, Chaotic Neutral “Downton Abbey,” and More
Blake Butler looks at the recent crop of Clarice Lispector reissues from New Directions. J. Robert Lennon has some seasonally appropriate fiction for you at Recommended Reading. Lindsay Zoladz’s column Ordinary Machines, which looks at technology and music and identity, debuts at Pitchfork. Unwound will be releasing an album of live songs recorded in 2001. If these stills are any indication, the book trailer for Warren Ellis’s Gun Machine should be very interesting. Nick Offerman is voicing Axe Cop. This […]
John Hodgman Writes Bio for new Mountain Goats Record
Here’s what I know about the new Mountain Goats album: It’s called Transcendental Youth, it comes out on October 2nd, the words “Florida,” “Judas,” and “Satan” are all included in the song titles, and John Hodgman wrote this biography.
Indexing: Hodgman & Balzac, NYRB Classics, William Faulkner disciples, Walton Ford, Martin Amis, and more
A roundup of things consumed by our contributors. Jason Diamond I went to Walton Ford’s opening at the Paul Kasmin Gallery a month or so ago, and became pretty obsessed with his work. I guess I’m including this because the exhibition closes on December 23rd, and if you’re in New York, I want you all to see it.
Morning Bites: 2011 NBA champions, John Hodgman on OWS, Amis on DeLillo, Kurt Vile pics, and more
Jesmyn Ward, Nikky Finney, and Stephen Greenblatt became the only people that will be able to say that they won anything from the NBA in 2011. The Washington Post has a nice Twitter timeline of the National Book Award happenings, and The New York Times has a rundown as well. John Hodgman explains what Occupy Wall Street, Herman Cain, and the musical Cats have in common. Martin Amis talks of Don DeLillo’s “prophetic soul.” (Thanks Gabrielle Gantz for the tip) Ann Beattie talks to […]
John Hodgman + Tom Scharpling = Book Trailer Bar: Raised
Posted by Tobias Carroll We daresay that this Tom Scharpling-directed trailer for John Hodgman’s upcoming That Is All may have raised the bar for the nascent genre. It’s got Hodgman doing eccentric deadpan, a host of terrific locations, a very meta riff on celebrity cameos in book trailers, and an earworm-esque theme song. And it’s hard to argue with something where the central concept is “The Deranged Millionaire.”
Weekend Bites: 100 Years After Tolstoy, Yale Gives Back to the Incas, Richard Nash, Bellow’s Letters and More
At Slate: Looking at Leo Tolstoy 100 years after his death. At The Huffington Post: White people trying to make up for destroying ancient civilizations At Jewcy: An interview with Richard Nash. At Boing Boing: Somebody is really excited about the John Hodgman podcast. At The Atlantic: Sure, Harry Potter makes a ton of money, but is it the best franchise ever? At The Guardian: Saul Bellow: Letters is reviewed.