Chris Barsanti's Blog, page 166

Writer’s Corner: Ungrammatical

The Evolution of the Book mural at the Library of Congress (John White Alexander, c. 1896)

The last few years have been a boon for grammar sticklers. Surprise bestsellerslike Eats, Shoots & Leaves tried valiantly to stem the ever-growing tide of language informality in Western culture.

But writers are a rebellious lot. And while they appreciate the keeping up of standards—if you live by the word, one can get a mite protective about their being abused—they also don’t like being told what they ca...

Readers’ Corner: 3 Hopefully-Great September Books

Since summer is nearly on its way out and everybody is trying to finish up their beach reading—note to self: bringlighterbooks, both in weight and subject time, next time—it’s time to get on with what’s going to be hitting bookstore display tables in the next few months. Here’s a glance at five Septembertitles that look the most promising:

September 2

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell (Random House, $30)

After the historical misfire of The Thousand Autumns of Jacob Zoet,Ghostwritten and Cloud At...

Department of Weekend Reading: August 29, 2014

The cool head of Ferguson’s own Captain Johnson.
.
“A large number of American teenagers live exactly like Michael Brown. Very few of them are shot in the head and left to bake on the pavement.”
Martin Amis: It’s possibleHitler can’t be explained; and maybe that’s okay.
The rise of pulp fiction in Egypt.
When boycotts make no sense.
Homeless nuclear-armed subs,...

New in Theaters: ‘One Chance’ Nearly Makes It

Alexandra Roach gets charmed by James Corden, playing an unlikely opera singer from Wales, in ‘One Chance’ (Weinstein)

One Chance, one of those charming but really-should-have-been-better rom-coms,is opening this weekend in semi-limited release. It’s nearly worth seeing for the inestimable James Corden.

My review is at Film Racket:

For the true story of Paul Potts, the down-on-his-luck Welsh cellphone store clerk with dreams of becoming an opera star, you don’t expect much in the way of nuance....

Now Playing: Romantic Comedy Sci-Fi in ‘The One I Love’

Elisabeth Moss and Mark Duplass get a surreal bit of marriage counseling in ‘The One I Love’ (RADiUS-TWC)

The One I Loveis playing now in highly limited release. My review is at Film Racket:

How well can we ever know each other? That’s one of the less interesting questions posed by Charlie McDowell’s willowy and romantic science-fiction two-hander with a Twilight Zone twist about a couple with marriage problems whose sojourn at a therapeutic retreat takes a quirky turn. When the story is fully...

Writer’s Corner: Anaïs Nin on Saying It All

Anais Nin (Elsa Dorfman, c.1970s)

Asone of the twentieth century’s more celebrated and mutinous rebel authors,Anaïs Nin (1903–1977) didn’t seem to keep much back. After all, she made money for a time in the 1940sby knocking out ornately gilded pornography at a bucka page foran anonymous, wealthy collector. The stories were later prettied up under the label“erotica” andpublished posthumously in collections likeDelta of Venus.

Although she wanted to be remembered for her knotty and abstract avant...

Department of Weekend Reading: August 22, 2014

Billy Bragg swings through town: “You have the opportunity to show the world that St. Louis is not a cynical place.”
The farmers’ market stays open: “I ♥ Ferg.”
Human shields to North County:“White police are treating black citizens unfairly, and that probably won’t change until white people care enough to show up as allies to demand otherwise.”
For the head of the Missouri GOP, the most “disgusting” thing happening in Ferguson is … voter registration.
Nelly to Chris Rock and W.E.B. Du Bois; acti...

Writer’s Corner: The Humiliations of Writing

Writing and publishing any piece of work, from novel to Facebook postto letter to the editor complaining about your neighbor’s cats, is a way of putting yourself out there for the world to see. So it stands to reason that there’s a large potential downside. Sure, there’s the (remote) possibility of fameandwealth, oreven the occasional social media like. But more likely, and certainly more frightening, is the chance for embarrassment.

(Library of Congress, c.1872)

In his essay, “Writing is a Ris...

Department of Weekend Reading: August 15, 2014

Summer 2014: Ferguson, MO: “This isn’t Iraq. This is America;”turning Ferguson into a war zone;The National Reviewon the conservative reaction; once again, blaming “outside agitators.”
2012: One of the city’s most segregated cities has its own dividing line: Delmar Boulevard.
2010: Growing up black in St. Louis.
1950s–60s: The real reason that thePruitt-Igoe housing complex failed.
Summer 1949: The St. Louis swimming pool race riotthat the city tried to forget.
Summer 1917: The devastating and dea...

Now Playing: ‘The Trip to Italy’ is Highly Unnecessary Comedy, But Not in a Bad Way

Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan in ‘The Trip to Italy’ (IFC Films)

Two comics playing slightly tweaked versions of themselves, ravishing Italian scenery, phenomenal food, recitations of Shelley’s poetry, Tom Hardy impressions. That’s about all one needs to know aboutMichael Winterbottom’s nervy, gadabout sequel to the 2010 road comedyThe Trip.

The Trip to Italyis playing now in highly limited release. My review is at Film Racket:

The Trip to Italy’s total lack of necessity has little bearing on its...