Literary features
Squeeze a dollop of today’s society out onto a petri dish, stare at it for a while, and inevitably you’ll come to realize that most of those bright little colourful clusters flitting about in the slime are powered by a potent, barely visible urge to … Continue readingAristotle, Rhetoric And Modern Media Culture
First appeared at www.biblio.com Book collecting finds its best start in your passions. If you love something, you’re going to want to learn as much about it as you possibly can. Let’s say for example it’s beer. Everything about it fascinates you – its taste, … Continue readingBeer and Book Collecting
First appeared in Guerilla Magazine Charles Foran: Mordecai Richler was a person of notable contradictions: a Jew accused of being anti-Semitic; an ‘un-Canadian’ Canadian; a dutiful son who hated his mother. Nigel Beale: How do you think this kind of ‘definition by opposition’ played out … Continue readingInterview with Charles Foran, author of Mordecai: The Life and Times
First appeared in Guerilla Magazine When an accomplished poet tells you that he also builds boats, makes guitars, and catalogues micro-organisms it’s pretty hard not to want to connect the dots. But what if the poet tells you there are no lines to be drawn? … Continue readingBruce Taylor and the Essential Fruits of Wasteful Curiosity
First appeared in The Guardian Too many academics have abandoned clarity and enthusiasm for cliquey obscurity Most readers of lit crit would doubtless agree that clear, persuasive, interesting writing is key. Why then are academics so intent on obfuscation? I recently found myself browsing and … Continue readingReadings to put you off Books