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Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
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Every year, the booksellers at Powell’s submit their Top Fives: their five favorite books that were released in 2023. It’s a list that, when put together, shows just how varied and interesting the book tastes of Powell’s booksellers are. I highly recommend digging into the recommendations — we would never lead you astray — but today...
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Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
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Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
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Customer Comments
Renee Hirshfield has commented on (5) products
Film Noir Reader
by
Silver, Alain
Renee Hirshfield
, October 22, 2014
In September I was visiting Portland to attend the Film Noir: Portland festival at the Hollywood Theatre. Naturally, I allowed lots of time for a pilgrimage to Powell's Books, and it was entirely fitting that while browsing, I found this book to add to my collection of all things related to film noir. This collection of essays is the first in the "Film Noir Reader" series; as such, it serves as an introduction to the most darkly fascinating filmmaking period in the U.S. as well as a study of specific films in the noir canon, such as Robert Siodmak's "Phantom Lady" (1944) and Otto Preminger's divinely perverse "Angel Face" (1952). An anthology such as the "Film Noir Reader" allows a novice not only to gain some insight into film noir but also to become acquainted with representative examples. And how can anyone read about these intriguing movies without rushing to view them? Although I am fairly conversant in film noir, I value this book because it consolidates in one volume some of the best writing about the subject, including essays that are hard to come by otherwise. So whether you wonder why the fuss or you know already why film noir is endlessly fascinating, the "Film Noir Reader" is well worth buying.
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Pun Also Rises How the Humble Pun Revolutionized Language Changed History & Made Wordplay More Than Some Antics
by
John Pollack
Renee Hirshfield
, June 05, 2013
Upun my word!
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Spencer Tracy
by
James Curtis
Renee Hirshfield
, January 01, 2012
Despite some issues I have from both content and copy-editing standpoints (I am an editor and can’t help myself), James Curtis’s “Spencer Tracy: A Biography” stands as the definitive chronicle of this consummate actor’s life and career. I have loved Tracy ever since I saw “San Francisco” and “Edison, the Man” as a child; as an adult, I grew to admire him even more in “The Power and the Glory,” “Fury,” “Captains Courageous,” “Father of the Bride,” and the films with real-life love Katharine Hepburn. Curtis’s detailed research fills in the considerable blanks about Tracy’s early life, his stage career, and his professional and artistic struggles at Fox before the glory days at MGM. His tormented personal life has been the stuff of gossip for decades, but Curtis manages to present a balanced portrait of a man consumed by demons while possessed of occasional charm and considerable wit. “Spencer Tracy: A Biography” is an astounding 1,001 pages, of which 878 pages comprise the actual biographical portion. Halfway through this book, I began to find I could not put it down. A biography that becomes an inexorable page-turner is enough for me to declare “Spencer Tracy: A Biography” as my pick for the best book of 2011.
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Madame Bovary
by
Gustave Flaubert, Lydia Davis
Renee Hirshfield
, January 22, 2011
For many years, Gustave Flaubert's MADAME BOVARY has been my favorite work of literature. In fact, my dream has been to read French well enough to savor Flaubert's prose in its original form. Since that is yet to happen, I was thrilled to learn of this new translation by Lydia Davis and purchased the hardcover almost as soon as it was released. The Davis translation of MADAME BOVARY does not disappoint--and, as far as I can tell, may be the closest English representation of Flaubert's nuanced character development and social critique. What this translation truly expresses is the contemporary aspect of Flaubert's writing, in terms of both narrative and style. The story arc of MADAME BOVARY, published in 1857, resonates in our time: For who is Emma Bovary but a romance-besotted social climber who is contemptuous of her solid but dull (and, as we learn during Emma's romantic affairs, largely clueless) husband, bored with domesticity, and awash in debts incurred from too much shopping on credit? What's more, Flaubert truly is modern in not judging Emma--or have us impose our morality on her. We may find Emma's behavior tragically reckless and hurtful, but through Flaubert's ability to define her with surprising psychological insight, we can understand why Emma clings so desperately to dreams that can end only in despair. (In reading some of Flaubert's descriptions of Emma's behavior, I thought she would be diagnosed today as suffering from bipolar disorder.) I commend Lydia Davis for bringing MADAME BOVARY to new life--and for reminding us that, though much more than a century divides them, Gustave Flaubert is as au courant on the literary landscape as Jonathan Franzen.
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Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
by
Rebecca Skloot
Renee Hirshfield
, January 05, 2011
THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS exemplifies the best in scientific exploration, historical perspective, you-are-there reportage, and compelling narrative drive. Once I started reading about Henrietta Lacks and her lifesaving, ever-replicating cells known as HeLa, I could not bear to stop. What's more, my ex-husband—who doesn't read many books in a given year—picked up my copy and finished it in one sitting. Author Rebecca Skloot is a science writer who not only brings complex genetic concepts and ethical issues to life but also has the courage to recognize and reveal that sometimes enormous personal wrongs are perpetrated in the name of medical progress.
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