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Book Review: The Man Who Turned Into Himself by David Ambrose

It’s surprising sometimes just what the popularization of certain scientific ideas can do. Certain concepts work their way into popular culture, despite the difficulty of math or science truly behind them. David Ambrose’s The Man Who Turned Into Himself indicates that even theoretical physics can actually prolong the life of and perhaps even resurrect a […]

Book Review: Nazi Literature in the Americas by Roberto Bolaño

I’ll admit that sometimes I just don’t get it. Or maybe it’s just that my literary tastes are too prosaic.

I picked up Roberto Bolaño’s Nazi Literature in the Americas after seeing repeated references to it, most of them rather glowing. I knew what it was about. I knew that Bolaño, a Chilean author who […]

Considering cult books, most of which didn’t start a “church”

The Telegraph‘s book critics are at it again. It’s another one of their books lists, this time the 50 best cult books. Still, I get a kick out of these, particularly some of their comments about the books. So here’s the list with occasional quotations from what the critic selecting the book said about it. […]

Who can resist popping cellular cushioning packaging material?

Over the years, some trademarks became commonly used to describe a broader class of products or services. Kleenex is frequently used for facial tissue. And back in the day, it wasn’t uncommon to have someone Xerox documents rather than copy them.

That means trademark owners sometimes worry about how their marks get used. As a […]

Another disconnect from the education president

While I still try to avoid politics here, sometimes it invades the realm I’m more intent on carving out. Via three percent, I learn of this story in Publishers Weekly:

President Bush’s proposed 2009 budget eliminates all the funding for Reading Is Fundamental’s book distribution program that has, since 1966, provided more than 325 million […]