calvino Posted March 19, 2018 Share Posted March 19, 2018 Something light to read over spring break - hey Lammy???? Never heard of it - interesting publishing backstory, though. It seems that nothing ever comes easy for Russian writers.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted March 19, 2018 Share Posted March 19, 2018 Something light to read over spring break - hey Lammy???? Never heard of it - interesting publishing backstory, though. It seems that nothing ever comes easy for Russian writers.. Yeah, right? "A book judged so dangerous in the Soviet Union that not only the manuscript but the ribbons on which it had been typed were confiscated by the state." Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oil Can Boyd Posted May 7, 2018 Share Posted May 7, 2018 I know the relationship between the art and the artist is a tricky one and I'm mired in it right now. About a week ago I started reading Junot Diaz's "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," I've had it for a while but have never read it. Then I also read his piece in the New Yorker about the abuse he suffered as a child and felt sympathetic towards him. And then the allegations came out late in the week about his shitty and abusive behavior towards numerous people and I sort of don't want to read his book any more. I recognize that much of the art/music/literature that I have enjoyed over the years has been created by people that I might not like personally so how do you (or do you?) separate the art from the artist? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lost highway Posted May 7, 2018 Share Posted May 7, 2018 I got the new 33 1/3 series on Jawbreaker "24 Hour Revenge Therapy" and Fugazi "In on the Killtaker". Both have been great. The Jawbreaker one got a little silly with Aristotle quotes, but only slightly pretentious. Jawbreaker was after all a literary band. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted May 7, 2018 Share Posted May 7, 2018 I know the relationship between the art and the artist is a tricky one and I'm mired in it right now. About a week ago I started reading Junot Diaz's "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," I've had it for a while but have never read it. Then I also read his piece in the New Yorker about the abuse he suffered as a child and felt sympathetic towards him. And then the allegations came out late in the week about his shitty and abusive behavior towards numerous people and I sort of don't want to read his book any more. I recognize that much of the art/music/literature that I have enjoyed over the years has been created by people that I might not like personally so how do you (or do you?) separate the art from the artist? Oscar Wao is wonderful book. I didn't hear about Diaz, until I read your post. My wife and I were just talking about art/artists, yesterday - mostly due to the idiotic things Kanye West was saying. We concluded, that all humans are flawed (some way more than others). I have always able been able to separate the artist and their art. Though, I have never defended any artist who has said or did some stupid or criminal shit, because he or she was a great artist. Hell - we named our kid after a fascist, anti-Semite poet who was arrested for treason and committed to an institution. He wrote great poetry, though... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lost highway Posted May 7, 2018 Share Posted May 7, 2018 Crap, didn't know that about Diaz either. I still think he wrote a great book, but I might not go out and buy the next one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NoJ Posted May 7, 2018 Share Posted May 7, 2018 Hey Calvino, I named my first born after Nelson Algren. Well, his middle name is Algren. Glad to see other people used authors as inspiration when naming their kids. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted May 7, 2018 Author Share Posted May 7, 2018 I know the relationship between the art and the artist is a tricky one and I'm mired in it right now. About a week ago I started reading Junot Diaz's "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," I've had it for a while but have never read it. Then I also read his piece in the New Yorker about the abuse he suffered as a child and felt sympathetic towards him. And then the allegations came out late in the week about his shitty and abusive behavior towards numerous people and I sort of don't want to read his book any more. I recognize that much of the art/music/literature that I have enjoyed over the years has been created by people that I might not like personally so how do you (or do you?) separate the art from the artist? I struggle with this too. Sometimes it can't be done...the artist is infused in their work. Those times I can appreciate the art but I often find I can't get an emotional connection to it.I used to love Woody Allen's early movies...Bananas, Sleeper....and while they are still the same movies, they are different to me now that we know his personality more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted May 7, 2018 Author Share Posted May 7, 2018 Thanks to "Oil Can Boyd" for posting the below - finished it up last week - great, fun read. It's great that the author/illustrator had a "non-New Yorker who was living in New York City at the time" point of view. Just the right amount of snark throughout. Posted 02 January 2018 - 01:00 PM I can't tell you how much I am enjoying this book. It is part graphic novel but mostly an interesting personal history of New York City. It is funny and fascinating and informative. This is on my short list. I got the new 33 1/3 series on Jawbreaker "24 Hour Revenge Therapy" and Fugazi "In on the Killtaker". Both have been great. The Jawbreaker one got a little silly with Aristotle quotes, but only slightly pretentious. Jawbreaker was after all a literary band. I saw them recently, they were great! I'd gone to see Waxahatchee, who opened. (And were amazing) Has anyone here read The Little Stranger? I'm about halfway through and I can hardly put it down. I don't know about the "sleepless nights", but it's a mesmerizing, well-told tale. I'm dying to see how it turns out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 Hey Calvino, I named my first born after Nelson Algren. Well, his middle name is Algren. Glad to see other people used authors as inspiration when naming their kids.My oldest boy's middle name is J.R.R......Plus, he's named after me, so he's a "Jr." Then there's my youngest, e.e. Iceberg Slim. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oil Can Boyd Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 Oscar Wao is wonderful book. I didn't hear about Diaz, until I read your post. My wife and I were just talking about art/artists, yesterday - mostly due to the idiotic things Kanye West was saying. We concluded, that all humans are flawed (some way more than others). I have always able been able to separate the artist and their art. Though, I have never defended any artist who has said or did some stupid or criminal shit, because he or she was a great artist. Hell - we named our kid after a fascist, anti-Semite poet who was arrested for treason and committed to an institution. He wrote great poetry, though... Ezra? Or Pound? And I get it. If I avoided all art/music/literature by people who did horrible things then I'd miss out on a lot. Lou Reed is one of my musical heroes and by most accounts he was a pretty unpleasant guy. I agree with Kidsmoke's comments above about Woody Allen. I see his movies differently now (particularly Manhattan) than when I first saw them. I think the Diaz stuff is tricky for me because I am literally in the middle of his book while also reading these allegations against him. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 Ezra? Or Pound? Ezra -- always wanted to name my kid Ezra Myshkin ( one of my favorite literary characters - Dostoevsky's The Idiot) - but my wife nixed the middle name. Our other kid is named Zelda, another flawed person, but influential in the literary world. I guess, that what happens to some kids when they have liberal art majors for p's. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NoJ Posted May 17, 2018 Share Posted May 17, 2018 Michael Pollan's new book "How To Change Your Mind". If you like Pollan's style and outlook on life, you'll like this one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted May 17, 2018 Author Share Posted May 17, 2018 ill-take-you-there-9781451647860_lg.jpg This is next on my reading stack! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oil Can Boyd Posted May 23, 2018 Share Posted May 23, 2018 Picked up a used copy of this the other day and I'm about half way through it. It's pretty interesting. One of the things that strikes me is how inexpensive the Village/East Village were at that time. Hell talks about how a lot of musicians ended up there because it was affordable. How times have changed ... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NoJ Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 Just finished "Astral Weeks: A secret history of 1968" by Ryan Walsh. It covers a number of topics including Van Morrison's time in Boston, writing and recording Astral Weeks, the Mel Lyman cult (which I've never heard of before), the explosion of the use of LSD in society, the rise of The Boston Tea Party (a live music venue) and the Velvet Undergrounds's time spent there. Walsh did a fine job of weaving all of those topics into a fascinating story line. Anyone know that Van Morrison was into the occult? Not me. Anyways, check it out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 Just finished "Astral Weeks: A secret history of 1968" by Ryan Walsh. It covers a number of topics including Van Morrison's time in Boston, writing and recording Astral Weeks, the Mel Lyman cult (which I've never heard of before), the explosion of the use of LSD in society, the rise of The Boston Tea Party (a live music venue) and the Velvet Undergrounds's time spent there. Walsh did a fine job of weaving all of those topics into a fascinating story line. Anyone know that Van Morrison was into the occult? Not me. Anyways, check it out. Just finish that book, too. It was a great read. Crazy times for sure. Thought the bit about the James Brown concert right after MLK's assassination was interesting. Nice to see Barney Frank's name pop up. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NoJ Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 Yeah, the James Brown bit was wild. I heard a bit about that before but the book filled in all the blanks.All the info about Van Morrison's childhood was interesting too. He was/is a tripped out cat. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 And grouchy, I guess... Also didn't know he was so friendly with Peter Wolf. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NoJ Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 I think Van's grouchiness was a cover for his insecurities and weirdness. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 Yeah -- the drinking probably doesn't help, either. I know a few Irishman who tend to get grouchy when they drink.... I definitely need to read a Van Morrison bio. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NoJ Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 Being 50% Irish, I learned long ago that whiskey doesn't set well with me....if my mind is in the wrong place. Other spirits don't do that to me.I was thinking the same thing about a Van bio. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Magnetized Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 I just started David Sedaris's new book Calypso and have already cried and laughed my head off. Nobody does that to me the way he does. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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