Books & the Arts

Outrageous

Outrageous Outrageous

Sacha Baron Cohen’s The Dictator; Emad Brunat and Guy Davidi’s 5 Broken Cameras

May 22, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

In ‘Scandal’ and ‘Veep’, Can Female Politicos Be Powerful—and Sexy, Too? In ‘Scandal’ and ‘Veep’, Can Female Politicos Be Powerful—and Sexy, Too?

For women in politics, sexuality is often a liability. Will two new shows break the mold?

May 22, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Salamishah Tillet

This Week in Poverty: A Little Help for the Long-Term Unemployed? This Week in Poverty: A Little Help for the Long-Term Unemployed?

230,000 long-term unemployed workers lost their benefits on Sunday and the system is about to get a whole lot worse.

May 18, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Greg Kaufmann

Occupy This Album Occupy This Album

A new collection featuring ninety-nine tracks of class-conscious music from ninety-nine artists.

May 17, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Peter Rothberg

Blind Spot: On Christa Wolf

Blind Spot: On Christa Wolf Blind Spot: On Christa Wolf

A postwar German novelist’s complicated legacy.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Holly Case

The Ravaging Nothing: On László Krasznahorkai

The Ravaging Nothing: On László Krasznahorkai The Ravaging Nothing: On László Krasznahorkai

Satantango will devour you, you and everything you know.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Ben Ehrenreich

Mother Natures: On Elisabeth Badinter

Mother Natures: On Elisabeth Badinter Mother Natures: On Elisabeth Badinter

In The Conflict, the French intellectual takes American mothering to task.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Jennifer Szalai

Love, Sam: On the Letters of Samuel Beckett

Love, Sam: On the Letters of Samuel Beckett Love, Sam: On the Letters of Samuel Beckett

Samuel Beckett wants you to have a less bad day.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Aaron Thier

The Road to Hi Hat The Road to Hi Hat

Sunrise hurt the cat-owl’s eyes. Crows go to ground in the slim valley. Past Hard Shell, around through Softshell’s barnless swallows.  Transhumance older than the hills: Up the mountain in May to see the spindly sourwood flowers. Down in the fall with the firelit honey.  Even the river stones show early autumn: wet scarlet, sugar-maple bronze.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Merrill Gilfillan

Cradle Knoll Cradle Knoll

All the bloodhounds in the world touch down. Wardens come from miles around.   Last night a lazy dream, footage of a full range tossing under storm, wild zydeco wind up from the south via Hurricane Gap, leaves in the air, gullies surging, foaming brick-red— Van Gogh’s hair, sickle-cut, or General Sherman’s.   Grouse drum on hazy ridges. Down the road a place called Muses Mills. White-throated sparrows sing their whisper-song.               All the bloodhounds             in the world             can’t pin it down.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Merrill Gilfillan

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