Mark Stevens's Blog, page 2

Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, “Abundance”

It’s possible future historians will look back on the first quarter of the 21st Century—and who knows how much longer the current political intractability will last—and tag it as another kind of dark ages in the United States. The number … Continue reading →

Philip Kerr, “A German Requiem”

Post-war can be as messy and complicated as war itself. It can create a dense fog of confusion that creates the perfect atmosphere for bad guys. Identities can be shed like old snakeskins, crimes can be overlooked as civilizations regain … Continue reading →

Craig Childs, “The Wild Dark”

My wife and I moved from the Big City to a rural town six years ago. Mesa Verde National Park, a few miles from where we live now, is also one of the certified 100-plus Dark Sky Parks in the … Continue reading →

Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich, “The Fact of a Body”

A daring blend of memoir and mild novelization, The Fact Of A Body—A Murder and a Memoir is a riveting piece of work. I’ve read the minor criticisms and I’m rejecting them outright. First, the idea that Marzano-Lesnevich lightly fictionalized … Continue reading →

Carter Wilson, “Tell Me What You Did”

Poe Webb, who keeps a doozy of a secret to herself, hosts a podcast featuring the confessions of others. “The show where I invite you, the public, to come on and confess your crimes,” says Poe in her standard intro. … Continue reading →

Thomas Harris, “Red Dragon”

Classic for a reason. I re-read this recently after a couple of decades. And as soon as the story started unspooling, scenes came back to me, particularly Will Graham’s methodical, late-night walk-through of the home of Charles Leeds and family. … Continue reading →

Hampton Sides, “Blood and Thunder”

I blame television shows and I blame my college course on Westward Movement. Television shows like “Bonanza” and “Gunsmoke,” when I was a kid, made the old west look rough and troublesome but the settlements were already in place. White … Continue reading →

Erika Krouse, “Save Me, Stranger”

Story by story, character by character, and sentence by sentence you begin to feel the true breadth of Erika Krouse’s nimble, active imagination. Krouse ranges far and wide—Siberia, Bangkok, Idaho, Alaska, Nebraska. Women and men. Remote locations (Siberia, Alaska) and … Continue reading →

Dallin Kohler, “Pyro”

Obsession and snakes, bring it on. Obsession and snakes and a writer with excitement oozing from every scientific pore, sign me up. Dallin Kohler is one part herpetologist, one-part writer, and one-part ten-year-old boy. “:Hey,” he seems to say from … Continue reading →

Percival Everett, “James”

What else is there to say? Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award and widely and wildly popular, James is a gem. Percival Everett said he read Huckleberry Finn 15 times in a row and then set about writing the story of the slave Jim with his own perspective and voice, “in … … Continue reading →