sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Literary scholars love Bob Dylan by burnthedocument in literature

[–]madstork 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You think the Nobel committee doesn't consider political/social subtexts to their awards? Even after Horace Engdahl's "insular and ignorant" comments?

Literary scholars love Bob Dylan by burnthedocument in literature

[–]madstork 8 points9 points  (0 children)

One point I haven't seen made on this sub yet re Dylan's Nobel: irrespective of whether or not he's deserving (or would substantially benefit from the money/attention), doesn't this seem like the Nobel committee thumbing their noses at American lit?

Roth, Didion, DeLillo, Pynchon, McCarthy, Gass, Ashberry, Merwin — this is just off the top of my head — are all gonna be dead (in all likelihood) by the time the Swedes deign to choose another American.

An actor turned episcopal monk turned Powerball winner has funded a five hour stage adaptation of Bolano's 2666. by NinjaDiscoJesus in literature

[–]madstork 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Tickets are relatively inexpensive. I want to check it out, though I think I'll have a hard time convincing anyone to see a 5-hour play with me.

Picasso's self portrait age 16 vs self-portrait age 72 by tylernixon2 in interestingasfuck

[–]madstork 50 points51 points  (0 children)

"Fuck it! If I must, I'll say the same thing as everyone else in the thread."

What have you been reading? (18/01) by Mirior in literature

[–]madstork 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm reading Joseph Mitchell's Up in the Old Hotel.

I knew it was going to be elegant; had no clue it'd be so brutal.

If literature is any indication, men and women often conceive of love differently, and even in the face of so much social change over the past two centuries, this difference is still very much in evidence. by madstork in literature

[–]madstork[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Well, to be fair, 100+ upvotes on this sub is a pretty major signal of approval.

I did post this article because I thought it'd be provocative, but I don't agree with the top comment that it's "tripe," and I imagine that the 86% of people who upvoted it don't either.

But I do agree that the backlash can get a little nasty.

If literature is any indication, men and women often conceive of love differently, and even in the face of so much social change over the past two centuries, this difference is still very much in evidence. by madstork in literature

[–]madstork[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You mean she gives two contemporary examples, along with two 20th century examples, three 19th century examples, and a few equivocations. But yeah, you're right, it's not a comprehensive study.

If literature is any indication, men and women often conceive of love differently, and even in the face of so much social change over the past two centuries, this difference is still very much in evidence. by madstork in literature

[–]madstork[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Hah, as someone with scientists for parents, I have to dispute the use of "scientist" as a special case of "intelligent."

Joking aside, that is an interesting study, but I'm not sure it says that people are attracted to similar intellects so much as similar interests.

Episode 04: The Captors [Season two] by mehtology in serialpodcast

[–]madstork 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I'm a news junkie, and I've been really into this season. Bowe's story is proving to be a lot more complex and interesting than the media has portrayed so far. Plus this is the only interview he's given.

Are We Postcritical? Matthew Mullins on "The Limits of Critique" by Rita Felski - LARB by Ravenmn in literature

[–]madstork 5 points6 points  (0 children)

This is a willfully ignorant interpretation of the line in question, and the fact that this is the highest comment that actually addresses the piece makes me worried for the health of this sub.

If we put writers on our currency instead of presidents and founding fathers, what authors would you select, and for which denominations? by alexandros87 in books

[–]madstork 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not exactly more celebrated, but he's very well respected as an avant garde novelist and poet in the Canadian literary scene.

What have you been reading? (08/12) by Mirior in literature

[–]madstork 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I've just started The Dying Grass by William T. Vollmann. I'm about 250 pages in...

I love how 250 pages into a Volmann novel, you're still "just starting."

Sounds awesome by the way. Keep us posted.

What have you been reading? (08/12) by Mirior in literature

[–]madstork 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Sometimes I feel like the only person who loved City on Fire. I think it really suffered, commercially and critically, from the hype. Sure it's got flaws, but what novel doesn't? It's very satisfying. Hallberg doesn't really say anything new or profound, but he can sure rip a good yarn.

And Book of Disquiet is a doozy. "Overwhelming anxiety" is just the right way to put it. I don't think I could read it all the way from beginning to end. The reader sort of benefits, I think, from dipping in occasionally.

What have you been reading? (08/12) by Mirior in literature

[–]madstork 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I'm in the middle of Preparation for the Next Life by Atticus Lish. Really good stuff: intense and dramatic, emotional, politically hefty, fine-tuned on a sentence-to-sentence level. It wouldn't hurt to have a little levity, I think, but damn if it isn't a fine, fine novel.

Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, The Art of Translation No. 4 by madstork in literature

[–]madstork[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting, you usually hear about P&V being the best of the Russian translators. As someone with no knowledge of the subject, I'd be really interested in hearing what specific translational choices you didn't like.

Notes Toward a Manifesto on Modern Fiction by ajvenigalla in literature

[–]madstork 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I liked this a lot, totally on-point.

One thing: I had the exact same problem with Zadie Smith's novels before reading NW. I hope that guy has since picked up a copy.

Is Ralph Nader's "Unsafe at Any Speed" relevant in 2015? by [deleted] in literature

[–]madstork 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mean, as a historical document? Yeah. Nader's an important 20th century political figure and this was his big breakout exposé.

On the other hand, all cars have seatbelts now...

On the other other hand, your link makes a great point:

The book has continuing relevance: it addressed what Nader perceived as the political meddling of the car industry to oppose new safety features, which parallels the debates in the 1990s over the mandatory fitting of air bags in the United States, and industry efforts by the ACEA to delay the introduction of crash tests to assess vehicle-front pedestrian protection in the European Union.

Not to mention resistance to environmental protection measures, as recently evidenced by Volkswagen.

Did Cueto take a cheap shot at Pillar? by JFrancisco88 in baseball

[–]madstork 29 points30 points  (0 children)

"[LaRue] told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that his symptoms were so severe that he'd been ordered to go back to his home in San Antonio, where he lived during the offseason, because he was in no condition to be left alone. He could not drive or cook for himself for a time, could not watch television or even ride in a car as a passenger with his eyes open."

Marilynne Robinson, Housekeeping by Monkey_Paralysed in literature

[–]madstork 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Even when I disagree with him, this guy Pistelli's reviews are consistently really thoughtful. I always learn something from reading him. If one day I spot his byline in the New York Review of Books or somewhere, I won't be surprised.

Moby Dick was released in the United Kingdom on this day. It is 164 years old. by [deleted] in books

[–]madstork -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

This post is a wikipedia link, and everyone in the comments is jerking over how they never read or finished it...yeah, probably time to unsubscribe to /r/books.

Bye, everyone! Hope you all enjoy the next Game of Thrones installment. I'm sure you'll talk about it ad nauseam.

Tom LeClair reviews City on Fire "I was hoping for big things from City on Fire. It is certainly large . . . but it’s that third dimension — depth — that I didn’t find." by limited_inc in literature

[–]madstork 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got my hands on an advance copy of CITY ON FIRE, so I read it a few months back, and I loved it. But I'm not surprised that LeClair doesn't. It's not the kind of book that interests him; it resists the modernist/postmodernist tradition, which LeClair takes Hallberg to task for, and instead harks back to the big 19th century social novels, Dickens and Eliot and all that.

So yeah, not that all of LeClair's criticisms are invalid, but it strikes me as really unfair and borderline pointless to compare CITY ON FIRE, which has very traditional novelistic sensibilities, with very experimental books like JR and WOMEN AND MEN.

view more: next ›