James's comments
(member since Aug 31, 2008)
James's comments from the Constant Reader group.
(showing 1-18 of 18)
I don't own a Kindle but have seen my own book on someone else's device. The pictures and text looked pretty good, but in general I found paging around in it a little clunky. The book (Inside the Apple A Streetwise History of New York City) has a lot of cross references that could have been hyperlinked to each other; alas, they are not.Also, while it has search function instead of an index, I found it difficult to use. But I only got a chance to play around with it for about 20 minutes.
Apr 19, 2009 06:38PM
I'm look forward to your book, Ulrich.
Jonathan wrote: "We're certainly in town and could pitch in!The Chelsea Hotel is not for everyone -- but if you enter into the spirit of the place it could be fun.
And maybe we could hire James to give us a lite..."
As long as we're not gallivanting off somewhere, Michelle and I could certainly do a literary tour. And with enough people, we offer great group discounts!
Cheers,
J
Inside the Apple A Streetwise History of New York City
Apr 05, 2009 07:11PM
I've become quite the fan of "creative reshelving." (Like who's to say what makes a book "New and Noteworthy"?)On the other hand, I live in fear of Inside the Apple A Streetwise History of New York City ending up in botany.
I second the vote for The Botany of Desire A Plant's-Eye View of the World--a truly eye-opening look at how plants have shaped our lives.
Jonathan,Just FYI: Menupages is now run by New York magazine, so their info is somewhat integrated into the Menupages site.
A great resource is MenuPages (http://www.menupages.com/) which allows you to search by neighborhood and then narrow down by cuisine. It's the best way to find good food in the city. However, take the reviews with a grain of salt. Many of the bad ones, once you scratch the surface, have to do with slow delivery times.Cheers,
James
Inside the Apple A Streetwise History of New York City
Hamlet. Not because it holds all the secrets to the universe, but because I never tire of it and it always makes me strive to be a better writer.
A deejay at WFMU radio decided he didn't like the inaugural poem and that his listeners could do a better job. You can hear their "remixes" at:http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2009/01/th...
I agree, Candy, that it might have worked better before the speech.
I agree that it was lovely poem. And reading it on the page underscores her strong cadence and word choices. I just wish it had "soared" a little more (for lack of a better word).But who's complaining -- the fact that we have poetry at the inaugural is well worth celebrating.
Honestly -- a lovely poem that could have been more forcefully presented. I thought the presentation seemed a little "small" for the event.
Jan 16, 2009 11:20AM
Yay! I'd vote for it twice (if the Edgar people would let me vote).
I, like James Atlas, also often struggle with so-called "literary" fiction. I'm in the market segment that it's supposed to appeal to, but I am personally always in favor of the direct phrase.There was also a NYTimes article a few years ago that compared academic writing to so-called "popular" writing. It opened with a comparison that I still think is very apt (I'm paraphrasing here):
When a popular author writes something his readers can't understand, he says, "OK, I'll go back and make it more clear." When an academic author writes something his readers can't understand, he is likely to say, "You're not smart enough--come back when you have the skill necessary to understand me."
Jan 08, 2009 02:04PM
Ruth, Jonathan wrote an article about another compelling faker, art dealer Leo Nardus, that is available online at:
http://www.apollo-magazine.co.uk/feature...
(Nardus is in The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren, but this article fleshes out his story.)
Jan 04, 2009 03:17PM
Archaeology magazine had a good article about the machine last year; it can be found online at http://www.archaeology.org/0703/abstract...Good luck at the National Gallery -- wish I could make it!
I agree with Happyreader that food books and articles can seem snobby and, I think, a little self-righteous. A lot people didn't like Morgan Spurlock's Don't Eat This Book: Fast Food and the Supersizing of America because of it's "Gee whiz! I didn't know fast food could be bad for you" prose style. But the book was squarely aimed at people who simply don't realize how bad a processed-food diet can be.
I wish Pollan would write a book like that. In Defense of Food is a good read, but it doesn't provide the kind of concrete, step-by-step advice that someone who wants to eat better on a budget needs.
