In our morning reading: thoughts on books by Hanne Ørstavik and Touré, Constance Squires and Kurt Baumeister in conversation, and more.
Sunday Stories: “The Arena of Love”
The Arena of Love by Kurt Baumeister 1 The Little, Blue Gumshoe Reginald Van Meter wasn’t blue, but he looked it. And not euphemistically, in some down-in-the-mouth, bummed-out-pumpkin sense. Reg didn’t look blue because his wife, kids, and beloved dog, Sinatra, had left him. Though they had.
Afternoon Bites: Mike Watt, Hot Snakes Interviewed, William Boyle, David Leo Rice Fiction, and More
In our afternoon reading: interviews with Mike Watt and Daniel Mallory Ortberg, new fiction by David Leo Rice and Kurt Baumeister, and more.
Pop Culture Tropes and Chilling Satire: A Review of Kurt Baumeister’s “Pax Americana”
These are dark times for black comedy, especially if a humorist takes on American politics. A mere novel, it would seem, can never match the Real World. The problem clearly occurred to Kurt Baumeister, because he took his nasty jibes to another world. The title of his bleak yet bubbly Pax Americana smacks of satire, but also sketches a power structure that doesn’t quite match up with our own. Obama never happened, in Americana; rather, 2009 saw the Third […]
Morning Bites: Celeste Ng, David Burr Gerrard Interviewed, Sherman Alexie, Kurt Baumeister’s Latest, and More
In our morning reading: an excerpt from Celeste Ng’s new novel, interviews with David Burr Gerrard and Sherman Alexie, and more.
“We Carry Our Demise in Our Original Intent”: Kurt Baumeister on “Pax Americana”
Kurt Baumeister’s new novel Pax Americana is a tale of espionage, politics, and technology that could alter human society forever. It’s set in the near future–but this is also the near future of an alternate timeline, where an end to term limits caused the office of the President in the 21st century to be utterly dominated by Republicans. The end result is a story that plays out like a funhouse mirror for contemporary politics and debates over foreign policy and […]
Weekend Bites: Kristen Radtke Interviewed, Natalie Eilbert Poetry, Eugene Lim and Donald Breckenridge, and More
In our weekend reading: an interview with Kristen Radtke, poetry by Natalie Eilbert, and much more.
Afternoon Bites: João Gilberto Noll’s Fiction, Tayari Jones, Kurt Baumeister’s Latest, Ron Currie, and More
In our afternoon reading: discussing the writings of João Gilberto Noll, an excerpt from Tayari Jones’s forthcoming novel, and more.