Features & Reviews
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Iran’s Regime: Marching Toward a Cliff
A special comment by Tamim Ansary, author of Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes The Khomeinist regime in Iran is in terminal trouble; but that doesn’t mean Iran is about to repudiate Islam and become a…
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90 Miles from Home
Cecilia Rodríguez Milanés’s stories about refugees from the Mariel Boatlift present the conflicts and loneliness of exile.
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Reading Lists on Serious Topics From the Back Pages of the Newspaper
Our view of the world is so often sculpted by front page and home page, so here is a look at some long-ongoing crises of self-determination that only occasionally surface in the news: First, Nigeria and Big Oil. I’m not…
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John Keats, Sleep
John Keats’s tribute to sleep—called, fittingly, “To Sleep”—equates it, winsomely, with death. The poem is an invocation of that state which can be elusive, particularly to those with overactive or anxious minds, or small kids, or, in my case, both.…
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A Summons To The Alps
There are lots of reasons why you might have heard of John Berger, the novelist, art critic, intellectual, farmer and screenwriter. At the same time, when people are too varied in their pursuits, they sometimes slip under the radar.
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A Writerly Respect For Death
Now I realize it is a dazzling, sunny afternoon in San Francisco. People are no doubt reading books at Zeitgeist as I advised them to this morning. Children and dogs are cavorting in the parks. In fact, right now, I’m…
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Women Resexualized? Is Meat Sexist?
Since so many of us live in this paradoxical nation that is both obviously obsessed with women’s bodies, yet has a morbid fear of wardrobe malfunctions, there is no shortage of fascinating discussions online about the interconnections of women and…
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Just For Fathers: an excerpt from A Book Of Ages
Erik Hanson’s new book, A Book Of Ages is a compendium of moments from famous lives, including triumphs, failures, odd incidents, crossed paths and other such tantalizing miscellany. Especially revealing, apropos of this special day, is the excerpt about fathers,…
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The Sunday Book Blog Roundup
Greetings and salutations! I’m Michael Berger, today’s guest-editor. I’ve spent my last few days off sipping coffee and drifting through the labyrinth of book blogs. Which was terrific, because most of my work week was spent moving a bookstore. Yes,…
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The Sunday Book Review Supplement
Now that it’s finally Sunday, it’s time to read a new book. Perhaps you’ve noticed how Sunday parks and bars are full of blissed-out readers and lovers of the written word? Please take a hint.
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Monster Mashup
To continue on the subject of monsters and mashes for a moment: Last Sunday in the Los Angeles Times, Ed Park published his notes on Laurie Sheck’s A Monster’s Notes, which is a novel narrated by none other than Frankenstein’s…