The Los Angles Review of Books blog has a grammatical error. "Unlike Nancy, who’s mother died when she was three, I had a mom, and my mom had read Nancy Drew when she was my age." The contraction "who's" stands for "who is." The writer wanted the possessive form of "who" (whose) and failed to find it. [...]
Dystopias extrapolate the fears of the day while utopias project our dearest hopes and ideals. Science fiction writers from the Golden Age of post-WW2, for example, often address the disastrous impact of the potential for nuclear powers to obliterate the planet. They were concerned about global and intergalactic peace and the trade-off in freedom resulting [...]
Screenwriter, television producer, television director, comedian, and comic book writer, John Rogers: "There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal [...]
When white people complain about "reverse racism", it's generally because they have been badly treated by a person of color. "I’m not arguing that racism doesn’t exist, it’s more obvious than ever now. My statement is regarding reverse racism, which some people argue doesn’t exist."—on Facebook I would agree with those "some people." Set aside [...]
The author had my attention from the hilarious introduction to his memoir, Between Panic and Desire. I recognize the world he describes. Unlike his parents, my father never left; it was my grandparents who all divorced, some remarrying, some not. But while he was not yet 6 years old during the Bay of Pigs, I was [...]
The other day a relative posted a meme with hideous and clearly inaccurate images and information. Further investigation revealed the creator of the meme was a Danish neo-Nazi spouting appalling anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant and other hate messages. I can't help wondering if his profile is a fake Russian bot spreading discord and disinformation. As a [...]
Friends tend to express surprise that we still receive DVDs from Netflix. Perhaps "surprise" is not the word I mean. Shocked? Dismayed? Nevertheless (a favorite word), we enjoy movies, the local theater is chilly and has sticky floors, and some films never get here. And then we find them on DVD, sometimes long after they [...]
