Queens Reigns Supreme: Fat Cat, 50 Cent and the Rise of the Hip-Hop Hustler January 15, 2006Who knew I would have so many connections to a book about hip-hop and drug dealing? My first...
Ghostwritten January 2, 2006Sometimes I like books for no other reason than a feeling they give me when I finish them....
The Devil in the White City December 15, 2005I swear I’ve read like fifty books set at the Chicago World’s Fair. Whether the fair plays a...
Caught Stealing December 1, 2005There’s nothing like reading the first book of a trilogy after you’ve read the second. It’s like watching...
McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern Volume 16 November 1, 2005Someone somewhere at McSweeney’s put a lot of thought into the packaging of Quarterly issue 16. The three...
McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern Volume 15 October 1, 2005This, of all the McSweeney’s editions I’ve read, is the least memorable. Despite that, I was actually a...
McSweeney’s Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories October 1, 2005Genre fiction is interesting in that it straddles the line between pulp and the stuff in the glossy...
The Plot Against America August 1, 2005I can’t believe that Philip Roth plays to Middle America. I mean the guy couldn’t be more Jewish...
Strong Motion July 15, 2005I think I went one book too deep into Franzen’s catalog. Granted, this is the second of his...
Six Bad Things July 1, 2005I didn’t really realize this book was a sequel until I was half way through it. I didn’t...
Yellow Dog June 15, 2005I’ve pissed off more than one person recommending Martin Amis books. They’re not for everyone–and at times they...
True History of the Kelly Gang June 1, 2005I must admit that I knew very little about the Kelly Gang before reading this book. I’m not...
The Illustrated Zuleika Dobson March 15, 2005Yet another in a long list of books that are completely embarrassing to be seen reading in public,...
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle March 15, 2005I’m usually a little hesitant to read translated books. What if the author meant “that” and the translator...
The God of Small Things March 1, 2005I’m not sure what it is about me and books set in India or about Indians. It’s not...
Flesh and Blood March 1, 2005I’m not sure what possessed me to buy this book. And, after reading it, I’m even less sure....
Cosmopolis February 15, 2005DeLillo is often a tough sell. Everything is metaphor and high-minded social commentary–the earmarks of post-modern literature. Of...
McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern Volume 14 February 1, 2005These compilations are odd. I mean writing, and what you think of it, are so subjective. That’s what...