This year marks the 200th anniversary of Mary Shelley’s classic “Frankenstein,” a novel that its creator probably didn’t know would keep its grip on our imaginations for two centuries. To celebrate, the Library of Congress is hosting an all-day marathon reading of the novel in the Main Reading Room of the Thomas Jefferson Building. It’s… Continue reading »
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Deep Reading Is Good for You! (But It’s Harder Than It Used to Be)
The ability to re-read long novels might not seem directly relevant to our current political dysfunction, but neuroscientist Maryanne Wolf (Proust and the Squid) makes a strong case that it is in her new book, Reader, Come Home, which I wrote about for The Washington Post: “She makes a sound case that if we don’t protect… Continue reading »
Dying of Exposure
In 2003, I wrote a spirited–some would say snarky–op-ed for the Washington Post. Headlined “It’s a Little Too cozy in the Blogosphere,” it called out what I saw as excessive chumminess and logrolling in the then-new literary blogosphere. I took some heat from members of said blogosphere, some of whom forgave me and went on… Continue reading »
Digital Rabbitholes
How do we get anything done? Honestly. This morning’s rabbithole: Saw intriguing album cover posted on friend’s Instagram account. Searched for album on iTunes. Got frustrated (we’re so spoiled now) when iTunes failed to deliver. Googled artist/album. Found artist on SoundCloud. Turned up album after several searches. Prompted to listen via SoundCloud app. Had to… Continue reading »
Best in Show 2017
Happy 2018. We’re still here, aren’t we, and that’s something, the way the world’s going. Kudos to us all for hanging in there. At year’s end/beginning, I’ve seen a number of journalists doing “My year in stories” roundups. I considered that–I wrote a lot of stories this year!–but am not sure I have the energy… Continue reading »
