Tonight is the first event for the new book, and I've spent most of the afternoon at home with curlers in my hair and cucumber circles on the eyes...
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Favorite title of mine for 2010: the story goes, as this poet was dying, lonely and alcoholic, his last words were, "my vocabulary did this to me". Favorite book jacket as well -- the whole volume is beautifully published and the hardcover volume is perfectly balanced for the hand. But above all, best content I read in 2010: these are amazing poems. If you loved Kerouac, if you saw Howl and then went on to read more Ginsburg, you owe yourself this treat. Every page begs to be read aloud.
Some of will remember how we all learned in science class that Mercury kept one side to the Sun at all times; one face meltingly hot, the other the coldest planet in the solar system; a picture that inspired dozens of sci-fi novelists. Then the scientists said oops, no, we were wrong, Mercury does rotate enough to show all sides to the sun, after all.
Well, remember how we learned that the first Americans came over the Bering land bridge less than 15,000 years ago; crossed Canada through an ice free corridor that closed up behind them, hunting big game all the way? That their hunting caused mass extinctions? That they spread lightly across two continents, living in sparse hunter gatherer communities that were no match for European guns?
Oops -- this is all wrong, too. For me 1491 was like a good thriller, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough, new science in every paragraph. The well-researched picture he shows will turn every idea you held of the New World upside down. Fascinating and mind-boggling.
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As a gay man who came out in the 70s, I grew up and grew older with Maupin's wonderful series. Like Michael Tolliver, I got bruised by love, learned to accept my mistakes, discovered nothing is permanent, found out (gratefully) that life is rarely black or white. And had an enormous amount of fun along the way.
I am looking forward to sitting down and catching up with Michael Tolliver, find out how he's doing. Once again, from hearing his story, I think I'll understand mine a little better.
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(14 of 25 readers found this comment helpful)
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Mikel O has commented on (5) products.
My Vocabulary Did This to Me: The Collected Poetry of Jack Spicer (Wesleyan Poetry) by Jack Spicer
Mikel O, January 2, 2011
Favorite title of mine for 2010: the story goes, as this poet was dying, lonely and alcoholic, his last words were, "my vocabulary did this to me". Favorite book jacket as well -- the whole volume is beautifully published and the hardcover volume is perfectly balanced for the hand. But above all, best content I read in 2010: these are amazing poems. If you loved Kerouac, if you saw Howl and then went on to read more Ginsburg, you owe yourself this treat. Every page begs to be read aloud.The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
Mikel O, January 2, 2010
Of all the novels I've read in the last decade, this one has stuck with me the most. Plus, it's enjoyable, a page-turner.The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
Mikel O, January 2, 2010
Of all the novels I've read in the last decade, this one has stuck with me the most. Plus, it's enjoyable, a page-turner.1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann
Mikel O, June 28, 2007
Some of will remember how we all learned in science class that Mercury kept one side to the Sun at all times; one face meltingly hot, the other the coldest planet in the solar system; a picture that inspired dozens of sci-fi novelists. Then the scientists said oops, no, we were wrong, Mercury does rotate enough to show all sides to the sun, after all.Well, remember how we learned that the first Americans came over the Bering land bridge less than 15,000 years ago; crossed Canada through an ice free corridor that closed up behind them, hunting big game all the way? That their hunting caused mass extinctions? That they spread lightly across two continents, living in sparse hunter gatherer communities that were no match for European guns?
Oops -- this is all wrong, too. For me 1491 was like a good thriller, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough, new science in every paragraph. The well-researched picture he shows will turn every idea you held of the New World upside down. Fascinating and mind-boggling.
(17 of 33 readers found this comment helpful)
Michael Tolliver Lives: A Novel by Armistead Maupin
Mikel O, June 13, 2007
As a gay man who came out in the 70s, I grew up and grew older with Maupin's wonderful series. Like Michael Tolliver, I got bruised by love, learned to accept my mistakes, discovered nothing is permanent, found out (gratefully) that life is rarely black or white. And had an enormous amount of fun along the way.I am looking forward to sitting down and catching up with Michael Tolliver, find out how he's doing. Once again, from hearing his story, I think I'll understand mine a little better.
(14 of 25 readers found this comment helpful)