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7 Responses to "Book News Tuesday: Present Tense Pretentiousness Presents Tensions, Obama's New Book, and More"

Whimsy September 15, 2010 at 10:41 AM

People, the blogger was joking. Those aren't real quotes. But maybe he should have exaggerated more since they seem pretty believeable.

Denise September 14, 2010 at 05:54 PM

Oh, give the guy break. President Obama has daughters. He couldn't address the book to his sons. Can't these people worry about better things?

Pull, Man! September 14, 2010 at 05:43 PM

I'll bet dollars to donuts that their problem with present tense is it's the way screenplays are written and all writers seem to think movies and scripts are dumbing down the whole culture.

occassia September 14, 2010 at 05:02 PM

Some of our difficulty with present tense is simply its unfamiliarity. Perhaps when the trendiness of it all has subsided into mere familiarity, it won't generate so much complaint, and will be used only when it advances the work.

Ahimsa September 14, 2010 at 04:11 PM

There is a lot of pretension that goes along with the Booker nominees. It seems funny to pick out single tense--it's an overused device, I think, but far from the most annoying. That said, I really like grumpy British guys, so I like this attitude from Pullman.

Chris Bolton September 14, 2010 at 04:08 PM

@Neesy: Don't look at me, it was Beck's mistake. Samuel Francis Smith is a "true American" who was born in Boston.

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7 Responses to "Book News Tuesday: Present Tense Pretentiousness Presents Tensions, Obama's New Book, and More"

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