Iv Linera 
As I mentioned in the review of Zindel’s book The Pigman, Paul Zindel was an author who primarily wrote for young adults, but really didn’t write down to them. Although his characters didn’t always have mortgages, resentful ex-spouses, demanding bosses, ungrateful kids or more typical adult concerns, the books generally have characters, who despite not … Read more
Ska, Calypso and Reggae are all interrelated forms of music. One of the original giants of calypso music, who was also influential in the beginnings of reggae is Grenadian-Trinidadian singer Mighty Sparrow (Slinger Francisco). Mighty Sparrow has been performing professionally since the mid-fifties. The songs that he sings often have a sense of humor. These … Read more
By now the name of one Ms. Adria Richards hardly needs any introduction; over the past week, the Internet has been aflame with her exploits, most notably her actions taken in a moment of #Outrage over two fellow tech conference attendees making what she interpreted to be sexist, even misogynistic jokes while sitting behind her (even though … Read more
I have never been to prison. My understanding is that some (many?) of the nation’s worst large state men’s prison systems are or were until very recently informally racially segregated. Each large racial group has or had its own showers, recreation and exercise areas, phone banks, cafeteria sections, bathrooms, television rooms, and so on. A … Read more
The Hungry Earth is a new thriller/body horror novel written by Nicholas Kaufmann. As I get older I wonder if some of the fascinations I or other readers feel with body horror novels isn’t at least in some part driven by fear of aging and the inevitable body changes that occur. The driving force in … Read more