This photo accompanied both Springsteen-related articles from The New Yorker. The first, a long feature, is discussed below. The other is a shorter recap of Springsteen’s career. Both were written by David Remnick. With one week of summer vacation left, I’ve been looking back at what I did with my time off. I spent a large […]
It’s time for me to talk about the 2012 Pittsburgh Pirates. Although I often write about my love for baseball on this blog, I tend to approach it on a strictly literary basis. I don’t write about current developments in the Major Leagues in general, or of the Pittsburgh Pirates in particular, since this is […]
Alas. Sixty-six years after “We Real Cool,” white America gets the chance to respond. If you were ever a student in my English class, you read two poems–“Hope is the Thing With Feathers” by Emily Dickinson, and “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks. Eighth grade, eleventh grade, twelfth grade, creative writing–it doesn’t matter. Those two […]
Today is the memorial for Lee Patterson, who taught me for six weeks during my seminar at Yale University. He passed away in June at the age of 72. Dr. Lee Patterson was an incredible teacher and mentor, and I am fortunate that I had the opportunity to spend a summer in his classroom. All […]
Ever since I learned I was going to be the father to a son, I’ve been looking forward to the day that I got to take him to his first major league baseball game. That day turned out to be Thursday, July 5th, when the Marlins visited the Brewers at Miller Park in Milwaukee. […]
After reading Crime and Punishment, I have this nagging sense that I need to make a confession. So here’s a confession: I’ve never read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I’m baring my soul over here. I ordered this lovely annotated version by David. M. Shapard, and I’m ready to get into it. However, I’ve had a […]