Mythology is like salt. A pinch or two, it can bring out a whole new dimension in an otherwise bland dish. It can unlock the…
Author: Grant Wentzel
Knocked out the book Burial Rites by Hannah Kent this week for book club. It’s a first novel, not a bad novel, and we’ll see…
Despite a strict adherence to hand-washing and a measured avoidance of pre-schoolers, I had one of those days that always come once, twice, a winter:…
Are you familiar with this term, Woo? No? Short for the duplicative Woo-Woo, this pithier condensation Woo is some internet slang for all things spiritual.…
Ira Glass, of This American Life fame, was a regular voice on my stereo for years. Since the rise of the hydra-headed podcast, he’s slipped…
And another thing about Cannery Row. There’s something proto-beat about this book. A fast, loose style, a little wordplay, a piling on of adjectives, a…
It’s what we do, us former English Majors. We nit-pick, we analyze, we sift through layers like dusty-headed archaeologists. Digging for theme, imagery. Praying for…
I found this encouraging. You? Throughout his life Steinbeck signed letters with his personal “Pigasus” logo, symbolizing himself “a lumbering soul but trying to fly.”…
So I’ve got this stack of books I’ve read. They’ve all been put down–like one does with a lame beast–but not put to rest. They…
Hey man, how many times have I told you this? Why don’t you believe me? For the last time, I’m not a fantasy guy. Nothing…