In Sunday’s New York Times, A.O. Scott writes in praise of the American short story (long my favorite literary form), challenging “the conventional wisdom in American letters . . . that size matters, that the big-game hunters and heavyweight fighters . . . go after the Great American Novel,” and posits this fascinating future for short fiction: [...]
Archive for April 9th, 2009
Brevity’s Rainbow: The Staying Power of the American Short Story
Posted in Book Reviews, Books, Literature, Writers & Writing on April 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Rise of the New Yiddishists, or: Contemporary Jewish Writers’ “New Sense of Jewish Identity”
Posted in Books, Jewish Life, Literature, Religion, Writers & Writing on April 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
“Thirty years ago the American Jewish fiction of Philip Roth and Saul Bellow was all about Yiddish insults, blonde shiksas, and getting away from the past. Today’s talented crop of young Jewish writers, such as Nathan Englander, Michael Chabon, and Dara Horn, are weaving tales bound in a newfound ethnic pride that has revitalized Jewish literature in [...]
“Defiance”: Seeking A Balanced Legacy for Poland During the Holocaust
Posted in Books, Cinema, Europe, Foreign Travel, International Affairs, Jewish Life, Movie Reviews, Museums & Exhibitions, Politics, Popular Culture, Religion on April 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
“In “Defiance,” a clunky but well-meaning action film set during World War II and starring Daniel Craig, the Bielski brothers save hundreds of fellow Polish Jews by battling Nazis in the Belarussian forest. Directed by Edward Zwick and based on a true story, the movie, released around New Year’s, tried among other things to counter Hollywood’s usual tales of [...]
Making Book: The Crumpled Press & The Art of Independent Bookmaking in a Digital Age
Posted in Art & Artists, Books, Brooklyn, Business, New York City, Writers & Writing on April 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
“The Crumpled Press, the brainchild of [Jordan] McIntyre and [Alexander] Bick, publishes work by new authors and sets previously unpublished, notable lectures and articles into proper books — hand-sewn — on culture, politics, self-reflection, and poetry. ‘It’s original, thought-provoking work that might otherwise be tossed aside,’ says Bick, who is pursuing a history PhD at [...]
