David Klein's Blog, page 34
May 26, 2022
A Moment of Tranquility
When fractured in a world gone horrific, helpless against the forces of antagonism, trembling in anger and frustration, numb from despair, your breath tangled and spirit crushed, sometimes all you can do is visit a treasured place, and if you’re fortunate you might notice a moment so aligned and rhythmic, and even if it’s not […]
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May 24, 2022
The Story of My Covid
In May of 2020 we had tickets to The Moth Radio Hour held at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. The event was canceled due to Covid. I’ve always enjoyed listening to the Moth—live, unscripted storytelling events that NPR carries on WAMC. And about ten years ago we went to a Moth event in Northampton, […]
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May 19, 2022
How to Appear More Intelligent
“3 Easy, Research-Backed Ways to Appear More Intelligent,” the headline reads. How can I not click on that link? It’s like being thrown a guaranteed lifeline in a stormy sea of self-doubt. At my age, my intelligence quotient might have peaked, or even begun its descent on the far side of the bell curve. It […]
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May 17, 2022
“Sea of Tranquility,” Emily St. John Mandel
In 2020, six years after her huge bestseller “Station Eleven” Emily St. John Mandel published “The Glass Hotel,” a novel about a Ponzi scheme I found compelling and have read twice—one of those alternatively structured novels that follows a diverse cast I tend to gravitate toward. Less than two years later came “Sea of Tranquility.” […]
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May 15, 2022
In Support of Women’s Rights
We stood waving our signs under the hot afternoon sun and we called and chanted to passing drivers at the busy intersection. It was a day of organized protests, held across the country, to demand equal health care rights for women, for women’s choice, and to revolt against the sickening storm of conservative theocracy flooding […]
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May 12, 2022
Long Live the Tulip Queen
One of the few special events in Albany, NY is the annual Tulip Festival in Washington Park. The tradition dates back to 1948 when the city of Albany sent aid to the Dutch city of Nijmegen which was struggling to recover from the devastation of World War II. To express their thanks, the Dutch sent […]
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May 9, 2022
A Modest Pronoun Proposal
I’m a guy that knows my grammar, yet I’m constantly messing up a person’s preferred pronouns. I forget that a friend formerly referred to as she now prefers the pronoun they. But they is a plural pronoun and so I get confused. And he is now zhe. But what’s the correct pronunciation of zhe? And […]
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May 8, 2022
Many Years Ago on Mother’s Day
It’s almost forty years since I’ve had a mother. Many memories of my mom are foggy, others long forgotten. But today I’m remembering how on our birthdays my mother would rock us in the chair and sing an Italian lullaby. Every year. When I got older it became a joke, but still a required tradition. […]
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May 4, 2022
There’s No Avoiding the Goon
Back in July 2010, two compelling novels were published by Random House. One was “Stash” by David Klein and the other was “A Visit From the Goon Squad” by Jennifer Egan. Both novels were structured around interlocking stories told from the point of view of multiple characters, but while Egan’s book became a huge bestseller […]
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The Most Important Novels in My Life
I have set myself a task for 2020: reread the ten most important books in my life. To qualify for the list, the novel (or novella or short story collections; I’m including those also), must meet one or more of the following criteria: It was so profound and meaningful to me that I’ve read the […]
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