Nine Stories, by J. D. Salinger

by Derwood Hunsdale-Talbot on February 4, 2010

In 1953 J. D. Salinger published Nine Stories and this week he died. These two occasions represent triumph and tragedy, respectively, and this particular online book review is dedicated to the memory of a brilliant American author.

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Oryx and Crake, by Margaret Atwood

by Derwood Hunsdale-Talbot on January 21, 2010

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The Broken Teaglass, by Emily Arsenault

January 18, 2010

For a book that could have been the Holy Grail for wordies everywhere, Emily Arsenault’s The Broken Teaglass was a let down. The setting for a brilliant mystery novel is there: an intriguing job, a saucy love interest, an unsolved murder, creepy neighbors – books greater than you and me have been built [...]

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Consider the Lobster and Other Essays, by David Foster Wallace

January 8, 2010

Wallace’s 2005 collection of essays is by no means new media, yet worthy of note this month, the half-birthday of DFW’s unfortunate demise.
Consider the Lobster, like all of Wallace’s prose, is hard work to read. These days, where drippy, thin works like Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight and Jodi Picoult’s entire repertoire are widely touted, [...]

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9 Ways to Turn Old Musty Books Into Something Cool

December 30, 2009

Bibliophiles and bookworms, English majors and lovers of literature: is it possible to have too many books? They accumulate so quickly! Every member of your family getting you the same three books you requested for Christmas. Seeing Don DeLillo marked half-off, knowing you dumped a half-caff latte on your copy of Underworld, and – even [...]

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