Raised by Puppets: Only to Be Killed by Research

by Andrei Codrescu

Witty and original essays on America discuss art administrators' "punk nostalgia," food fanciers in search of new culinary thrills, and the remarkable and outrageous face of everyday life in the U.S.A

Genres: Nonfiction, Essays

198 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Andrei Codrescu is a poet, novelist, essayist, and NPR commentator. His many books include Whatever Gets You through the Night, The Postmodern Dada Guide, and The Poetry Lesson. He was Mac Curdy Distinguished Professor of English at Louisiana State University from 1984 until his retirement in 2009.

Reviews

[Margie]

These are very entertaining, but have to be read not more than a few at a time. Since they're all either radio pieces or newspaper articles, they follow very strict guidelines, which can make them seem a bit repetitive. It doesn't detract - it's just worth noting.

[daniel]

for the longest time, i refused to carry anything heavier than a pencil and a thin notebook. and wherever i went i saw people likewise swinging lightly on the balls of their feet with only the merest accoutrements. i now lug a briefcase, books, papers, several pens, and, god help me, a portable computer. poetry, i used to say, is the loveliest of arts because all you need for it is your wrist, a razor blade and a wall. but these days even poetry goes about carrying the baggage of time. and my body, like the cosmos, contains more dark matter than i originally thought. inside everyone there turns a radar, ever so softly. it knows what we have forgotten: that we were made to fly. that in the body there turns yet the propeller of light. i now and then take a reading from it when things stay still long enough. meanwhile, i stay away from scales. the news is not good.

[Hana b]

For years I've loved hearing Codrescu on NPR. Now I go back to the old NPR Codrescu podcasts when I need to hear his wonderful voice and sarcastic and acerbic tales. This is a great collection of one and two page musings that are sometimes a touch depressing for how cynical they can be, often funny, but always amusing and brilliant.

[Keith]

Re-reading for me of a collection of Codrescu's little radio essays. Always satisfying, thought-provoking and entertaining. I'll let that mini-review suffice for the rest of his various collections of this sort.

[Tina]

I may be a little biased here, he was my poetry professor at LSU, but this book is great. A top pick.

[Inggita]

collection of bitterly humorous sketches of everyday life in NPR's NOLA-based commentator