I wrote in my last post about the new PBS special Shakespeare Uncovered, and because I walk the walk in addition to blogging the blog, the show inspired me to open Henry V. And I have on my hard drive—taking up space that could otherwise be occupied with pictures of my cat—the collected works of Shakespeare. After the novel I’m reading now, I plan to move on to a collection of Ibsen plays. But here’s the thing: I don’t write...

Today, in a rare mood to shake things up, I’ve decided to review something other than old books about writing, old books that only I care about. And, in a seemingly similar mood, PBS has decided to air something other than reruns of Doctor Who and is instead showing a series, Fridays at nine, about Shakespeare. So, in a way, I’m still writing about old books that only a handful of people care about, but I can have the illusion of...

To save our personhood is to dispossess ourselves of what we thought we knew of it, so that aiming our desire--our re-schooled longing--at dispossession, we liberate objects and world from our engorgement.

Kirsten Clodfelter reviews Sandra Marchetti's "The Canopy"

The next few installments of Guide to the Guides will focus on style guides, and this post I’ll be discussing Spunk and Bite by Arthur Plotnik. I’m happy to report that this is one of the few books I’ve reviewed not meant for classroom use, which means there aren’t a thousand editions and doesn’t cost more than a normal paperback. The Great Parts It’s written by an editor/publisher—Plotnik has a long history as both a book...

Fear not, world: I have returned. I took a break from this blog because I was knee deep in MFA applications, but those are done. (And if any of you have any sway in any admissions committees, remember that the last name is spelled McCaul and that I’m awesome.) Sadly, I haven’t returned with any more originality, so for want of that I’m going to be continuing my Guide to the Guides series, going through the rest of my collection of...

It is traditional at this time of the year for folks of a reflective bent to look back on the past 12 months, consider what went well and what didn’t, ponder changes made and changes needed to be made, goals achieved and goals unrealized, and then, after bloating the body (if not the mind) with Holiday cheer, forming a list of New Year’s Resolutions. These action steps are meant to keep you focused and fortunate in the months ahead,...

Half a Dozen Disappointments:  Titus Andronicus, Local Business; Flying Lotus, Until the Quiet Comes; The Beach House, Bloom; The xx, Coexist; Cat Power, Sun; and They Went On, Who’s Afraid of Richard Dreyfuss?. Thirteen Thirteens:  Guy Capecelatro III, North for the Winter; Grizzly Bear, Shields; Dirty Ghosts, Metal Moon; Now, Now, Threads; Beak, >>; The Sea and Cake, Runner; Dictaphone, Poems from a Rooftop; Neil Young and...

These are NOT meant to be broken.

This is the story of the company where I work, and what we have been doing every year to help a family during the holidays.