Wednesday, September 21, 2022

Some books I've read 53


Left Bank: Art, Passion and the Rebirth of Paris 1940-1950 by Agnes Poirier 
Great book about the existentialism movement, including all the usual suspects like Sartre, DeBeauvoir and Camus, but also Juliette Greco, Boris Vian and Arthur Koestler.

The Typewriter is Holy: The Complete Uncensored History of the Beat Generation by Bill Morgan Nothing particularly new here, but a pretty good summing up of the Beats. 

Ridley Scott: Interviews by Laurence F. Knapp and Andrea F. Kulas
A collection of Scott interviews from The Duelists to Hannibal.

Themes for Great Cities: A New History of Simple Minds by Graeme Thomson
Can you split the history of Simple Minds in two? Before and after Don't You Forget About Me? Possibly. At least they lost something on the way. Thomson mostly goes through the early albums, including their masterpiece New Gold Dream, up to Once Upon A Time. I must confess I have not listened to any of their later stuff.

See What Can Be Done by Lorrie Moore 
A collection of her essays, written in her unmistakable style. Haven't read the whole thing from front to back yet, rather picking an essay from time to time.

Can You Feel The Silence? : Van Morrison - A New Biography by Clinton Heylin
So, apparently, Van can be kind of an asshole. Who knew.

Amazing Spider-Man: Spider-Man No More
Amazing Spider-Man: Man-Wolf at Midnight 
Amazing Spider-Man: The Goblin and the Gangsters 
The plan is to get the complete Ditko Romita Kane Andru run. Four of the Epic collections are out of print or too expensive, so some patience will have to be involved. I think it's more than just nostalgia. These were all great artists, who knew how to tell a story, something that was lost in superhero comics a while. And some of the stories were pretty good as well.

Currently reading: 

David Bowie : A Life by Dylan Jones
In Montparnasse : The Emergence of Surrealism in Paris, from Duchamp to Dali by Sue Roe
Oh, and haven't finished Nightmare Alley

6 comments:

  1. FWIW, I enjoyed director Ridley Scott's commentary on Alien: Covenant (a film that disappointed—I really liked Prometheus). So, if you're looking for more interviews, don't forget his DVD monologues!

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    1. I didn't like those films, and I don't have the dvds. Is there a commentary track on The Last Duel? I could listen to that one.

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    2. I looked this up in the library catalog, but I could not tell whether any director commentary tracks are included on the DVD.

      This I can say: ‘Upside Dawn’ has officially been recommended for purchase by the Milwaukee Public Library. (And they usually approve such requests.) Will it introduce your work to new readers? One can only hope. In any case, it will become part of the cultural landscape among freeloaders and scholars. Eyeballs will be teased.

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    3. Thanks! Eyeballs should always be teased.

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  2. This just in: I see a potential to reach new audiences via promotional tie-in. You might also increase your revenue streams through celebrity endorsement. (Or maybe it's just conversational fodder for your next Colbert appearance?)

    https://athleticbrewing.com/products/upside-dawn-golden-ale-non-alcoholic-6-pack

    Libraries, liquor stores and supermarkets… What's next?

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    1. Yes, I've noticed I am not alone in coming up with that name. Oh, well. It could have been worse.

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