There’s a fine line between a dystopia and a utopia. Unfortunately, Dave Eggers chose to draw his line with an extra-thick marker. I’m talking about his fifth novel (fifth or so—but who’s counting?), The Circle. The story focuses on the… Read More ›
Depression? PTSD? GeekDad, who has both, has published a fascinating short personal essay on what he calls “the therapeutic value of model railroading.” You don’t have to be a model railroader to appreciate the essay. You don’t have to be… Read More ›
The Foers know what they’re talking about. You are probably familiar with Jonathan Safran Foer, and perhaps you know his brother Franklin Foer. But this post is about his other brother, Joshua Foer—in particular about a long non-fiction piece he… Read More ›
You are probably more “with it” than I am, so you probably know that Licorice Pizza is slang for a vinyl phonograph record, that it originates both as an expansion of the abbreviation for “long playing” and as a visual… Read More ›
Irises. Perhaps, like some people I know, you don’t believe that that’s how the plural of iris is spelled. Perhaps you prefer the original spelling, ἰριδες. In any case, our ἰριδες are doing quite well, considering that it’s only mid-May.
You’re in for a treat—if you read this will book with full focus and close attention. The title of this post is also the title of the book. Right away, you notice its form, and you realize that author Dennis… Read More ›
Exactly 17 years ago today. That was the day when I started this blog. You can still read my very first post, which was originally on Blogger and then transferred to WordPress. I have written 2,194 posts since then, which… Read More ›
Twenty-one years ago, Carol Burnett and four other actors performed a Broadway revue of Stephen Sondheim songs called Putting it Together. I didn’t get to see it on Broadway, but I just watched the filmed version on DVD, which you… Read More ›
No, it has never happened to me. And I hope not to you either. But it did happen to journalist Frank Bruni. I have just finished reading his resilient memoir, The Beauty of Dusk. Bruni’s affliction, non-arteritic anterior optic neuropathy,… Read More ›
Yes, I know you can read this, namely this blog post. The question is why can’t you read the passage below this paragraph. OK, OK, so it’s not in English, but that’s not the point. It’s from the Greek Old… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 