Middle Passage by Charles Johnson
middling swashbuckling adventure
Tag: USA
My Volcano by John Elizabeth Stintzi
a failure of intent
Another Country by James Baldwin
another hagiography on Baldwin as scott packs up his north american life
Jarett Kobek & the Zodiac Killer (Motor Spirit & The Hunt for Zodiac)
two new books from Jarett Kobek about CRIME CRIME CRIME
On The Beach by Nevil Shute
repression at the end of the world
The Letters of Mina Harker by Dodie Bellamy
an excellent – near flawless – novel
The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain
struck down by covid, scott crawls into a classic novel
The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin
a hyper-cautious novel about archetypes avoids offence but also characterisation
Clotel or, the President’s Daughter by William Wells Brown
excellent, significant, 19th century anti-slavery novel
The End of Obscenity by Charles Rembar
interesting book of the legal history of removing literary censorship
Zora Neale Hurston (and a state-mandated medical exam)
in which the canadian state tests me for TB & syphilis
Joan Didion: The 1980s & 90s (PART THREE)
i cannot read myself happy
Joan Didion: The 1980s & 90s (PART TWO)
if u see a dead racoon at the side of the road
As We Have Always Done by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
powerful academic text on the impossibility of decolonisation within capitalistic structures
Four Repeater Books (two I recommend)
two excellent books, two not excellent books
on sleaze via Saul Bellow
sleaze is not a synonym for prurience
Four Short(ish) Novels from 2020
can’t stop reading / can’t start doing anything else
Fictionalising Fascism
don’t be stupid, be a smarty / read fiction ’bout the nazi party
Valentino and Sagittarius by Natalia Ginzburg
the lockdown continues and nothing changes
50 Words on Each of the Essays in Joan Didion’s Let Me Tell You What I Mean
Yes, it’s here, the new (new?) Joan Didion, so to celebrate I’m going to give a tiny tiny tiny commentContinue Reading
James Baldwin Threeway
baldwin, baldwin, baldwin
Sharks In The Time of Saviors [sic] by Kawai Strong Washburn
but sharks are evil, right?
Surrender by Joanna Pocock
big post on privilege, re-wilding, ageing; a phenomenal read
Tender Omnibus
exceptional omnibus from NY publisher Tender Buttons
Cane by Jean Toomer
ok toomer
In the House of My Father by Hiwot Adilow
another kooky blog post
Native Son by Richard Wright
surprisingly good protest novel; thoughts on UK election result
Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin
great early[ish] essays from one of america’s best
People I’ve Met From The Internet by Stephen van Dyck
an essential contemporary memoir
Most of my Heroes Don’t Appear On No Stamps by Ran Walker
brief comments on a collection of kwansabas
John Barleycorn by Jack London
1914 memoir about alcoholism that oozes big denial
Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
I read another great, serious, time travel novel
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
a solid, if unambitious, novel from a major contemporary voice
Human Tetris by Vi Khi Nao and Ali Raz
a great, new, collection of short poems about love ‘n’ sex
Blues For Mister Charlie by James Baldwin
a sad play from JB the master
The Battle for Paradise by Naomi Klein
a short post about a short, but important, book
I Hate The Internet by Jarett Kobek
the best novel I’ve read about the internet
And The Band Played On by Randy Shilts
an essential non-fiction read and a new documentary on its legacy
Selected Tales by Edgar Allan Poe
mediocre prose and a child bride: time to cancel Poe
An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim
beautiful grown-up time travel
I Love Dick by Chris Kraus
a little bit of Vitamin D…
So Far From God by Veronica Gonzalez Peña
phenomenal essay on Mexican corruption
Known and Strange Things by Teju Cole
Teju Cole Me By Your Name
The Intuitionist by Colson Whitehead
Colson Whitehead’s intriguing, if imperfect, debut
Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black by Cookie Mueller
some really gorgeous prose
My Friend Dahmer by Derf Backderf
a dark, engaging, affecting read
There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé by Morgan Parker
v good poems tho a v poor blog post
An American Dream by Norman Mailer
fun frothy men’s fiction
Negroland: A Memoir by Margo Jefferson
Finally, a book about race that makes me angry at myself
Notes From No Man’s Land by Eula Biss
great essay collection… from america
Triumph Of The Now 