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By Sean Clark, on May 9th, 2013 [Every so often on on our Twitter feed we'll point to something other than books that caught our attention. In this occasional series, we highlight a few of those things, and a few others. Follow it here. The recommenders (Aaron, Sean, Nico, and Marc) are denoted by initials.]
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Read
Saga - Aaron’s mentioned this comic a lot on the podcast and in his column. I’m not a big comic reader, but Saga is one I’ve stuck with. [NV]
Pedagogy of the Oppressed – Halfway though teacher school and finding things becoming a bit stale, I’ve started to branch out from my practical classwork and explore more pedagogical primary texts. Paulo Freire’s masterwork, written as a response to thinkers like Marx and Hegel, is not an easy read. But it’s got a lot to say, and sheds light on why, despite our best efforts, America’s schools are failing. If only the policymakers would read this sort of stuff. [SC]
Watch
Room 237 – Anyone who’s ever really loved a movie, even if it wasn’t The Shining, will get a kick out of this documentary. Director Rodney Ascher gives his subjects, all Shining obsessives, room to explain their often bizarre theories about the film’s hidden messages without judgment, and only slight traces of irony. The plausibility of the interpretations isn’t the point; Ascher is more interested in the dedication to lateral thinking, and the unique relationship between reader and text. [AB]
PBS Digital Studios – The channels especially worth checking out are Off Book, Idea Channel, and Blank on Blank, but if you only have time for one video, watch the Blank on Blank featuring Larry King (“Larry King on Getting Seduced”). [MV]
The Glades - Unassuming, surprisingly good cop show on USA. The first two seasons are out on Netflix. The new season arrives this May. Also try Life starring that dude from Homeland. [NV]
All the Cartoon Network programming recently added to Netflix – I spent a lot of time watching Dexter’s Laboratory in college, but never while high. And I’m not high while watching it now on Instant View. I don’t know what that means, except that I am obviously an adult. You can be, too, if you watch a bunch of cartoons all the time. Transformers, G.I. Joe, Jem, Voltron, He-Man, and other 80s action cartoons, also on Netflix – the thing I said above about being cool, but times ten. [AB]
Adventure Time – For some reason Aaron left this off the list of great CN shows that just came to Netflix. Adventure Time is one of my favorite shows, maybe ever–especially as you get to the later seasons–some of the references are so subtle and esoteric that even the most diehard Zelda-fan stoner would probably miss them. But, like Dexter’s Laboratory, drugs aren’t compulsory. [SC]
Use
You Need a Budget - I got this on Steam for $20 and it’s already been worth the price. It’s a simple budget program, but the accompanying iPhone app makes it easy to keep track of your expenditures, without giving it your bank info, like Mint asks for. [NV]
Listen
Professor Blastoff - Comedians Tig Notaro, David Huntsberger, and Kyle Dunnigan share a hobbyist’s interest in and enthusiasm for science, philosophy, and unexplained phenomena, and their podcast is ostensibly an occasion to explore such topics with guests, including fellow comics, scholars, and the occasional fan. Every episode reliably descends into silliness, and recent highlights include the game “Name That Punky”, which is based on Dunnigan’s uncanny impression of “Punky Brewster” actor George Gaynes. [AB]
The Terror – The Flaming Lips’ latest album is pretty ballsy in how out there it is. Gone are the catchy, happy tunes ripe for advertisement-background exploitation of the last 10-15 years. This album is full of complex, psychedelic sound layers that harkens back to the days of Zaireeka. (I linked to the video–NSFW–for one of the songs.) [SC]
Waiting For Something to Happen – The critical consensus seems to be that “Waiting For Something to Happen” is a lesser effort than Veronica Falls’ debut album, but I’m enjoying it just as much as the eponymous record. And I can’t stop listening to “Buried Alive”, so that’s a solid recommendation even if you don’t think the rest of the album holds up. [AB]
Planet Money - For years I avoided the Planet Money podcast because high finance sounds so damn boring. As it turns out, this podcast is closer to Radiolab than CNBC. Recent episodes touched on the economic weirdness of North Korea (e.g., they can’t get gas, so their trucks run on wood), the way the Amish do business, and the insane history of the American federal income tax. [NV]
Sklarbro Country – Randy and Jason Sklar file reports from the more absurd shadowlands for the sports world with their twice weekly podcast (“Sklarbro County”, the sister show, takes a more general “weird news” approach.) While many comedy podcasts are, for better or worse, heavily improvised and ramshackle, “Sklarbro Country” is carefully crafted, while still allowing the Sklars to riff on stories and banter with their guests. If you have no interest in sports, or aren’t already a fan of the Sklar Brothers, you will be after listening. [AB]
Play
Zombies, Run – As much an audiobook as a game, this iPhone/Android app makes going out for a jog into an interactive game. Run to complete missions, and the more you run the more supplies you get to build your township HQ. There’s not much too it, and the story is pretty cheesy, but it’s a nice alternative to music and podcasts when out for a run. [SC]
Game of Thrones (the Xbox game) - I picked this up for $20 on Amazon, expecting nothing, and it knocked my socks off. It’s like watching a long season of the HBO show, with a pretty unique RPG game in the breaks between cutscenes. One of the best videogame stories I’ve ever seen. [NV]
Papers, Please – Indie game where you act as a border checkpoint agent for a fictional country in the Soviet bloc. Poses some pretty interesting ethical and moral dilemmas. You can play it free in your browser. [SC]
By Sean Clark, on April 30th, 2013 [In this feature, we highlight a handful of the best book reviews appearing over the weekend in major newspapers. Follow it here.]
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Not a lot of reviews to get excited about this week. The May edition of Nico’s Book Radar will run tomorrow, so check back then for some additional reading ideas.
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My Beloved Brontosaurus, by Brian Switek. Reviewed by Tess Taylor (Barnes and Noble Review).
Dinosaurs are fucking awesome. I will fight anyone who says otherwise. Because of this, dinosaur books are almost always written with enthusiasm and even exhuberance, which in turn makes reading about dinosaurs more often than not also fucking awesome. Who wouldn’t want to check out a “zany, sometimes mind-blowing romp through the new science of old bones”–I’m in.
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Bunker Hill, by Nathaniel Philbrick. Reviewed by Walter Isaacson (Washington Post).
I used to live a block from the Bunker Hill monument, otherwise I might have overlooked this one. But if you’re in the mood for a history book, this actually looks pretty good. And anyone who wants to join in the post-bombing Boston love might want to dig into this and learn about the city’s revolutionary roots. I’ve already ordered a copy for a father’s day gift.
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Quickly: Franzen on spending time with a self-help book. Two US presidents co-leading the country sounds like a disaster. This novel about Mallory’s third Everest ascent has promise.
By Sean Clark, on April 30th, 2013 I think the winter is finally over.
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Whack-Job Girls
ten stories, real short
Bonnie ZoBell, what a name!
worth a look and see
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He Died With His Eyes Open
mystery reprint
an A.L. Kennedy rec
deserves to be read
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The Quantum Thief
very smart sci-fi
deals in quantum abstractions
solid heist tale, too
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My Planet
the other new Roach
just old Readers’ Digest bits
not that worth your time
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What Things Are Made Of
“oil-slicked doomed penguins”
deliriously strange poems
check this collection
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The Best of All Possible Worlds
for shame i09
calling babytown frolics!
convoluted mess
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By Sean Clark, on April 17th, 2013 [In this feature, we highlight a handful of the best book reviews appearing over the weekend in major newspapers. Follow it here.]
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Harvard Square, by André Aciman. Reviewed by Charles McGrath (New York Times).
I have a soft spot for fiction that takes place in New England and particularly Boston, and so this one, set right near C4′s home turf, obviously caught my eye. It seems like a fairly straightforward literary novel, dealing with class, relationships, and what it means to be an outsider. But the 1970s Cambridge setting and McGrath’s promise of the “slyly comic” have me interested in learning more.
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The Interestings, by Meg Wolitzer. Reviewed by Heller McAlpin (Barnes and Noble Review).
Having grown up at one, a summer camp is another favorite setting of mine. This book sounds really good, and Franzenian in scope. If follows a group of friends from their time at an arts summer camp in the 70s all the way to the present, 50 years later. A book this big (in size and scope) takes some real chops to pull off. I don’t know anything about Wolitzer, but McAlpin seems to think she’s up to the task. Put this one in the ‘definitely’ column.
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There Was an Old Woman, by Hallie Ephron. Reviewed by Maureen Corrigan (Washington Post).
I’m not sure if I’m into the idea of a “thriller lite” or not, but the premise of this book (old people are suffering a seeming epidemic of dangerous falls in a low-income area of NY targeting for commercial development) does have promise. The book take place in a fictional corner of the Bronx, but draws on actual persons and events of history, which I like when done well. This one’s just a maybe for me, but worth a further look.
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Quickly: Pulitzer winners have been announced. This standalone story release of a story that didn’t make the cut for Saunders’s last collection, would be more interesting if it was free… Finally a review of a possibly interesting nonfic.
By Sean Clark, on April 15th, 2013 Author: Hannu Rajaniemi
2012, Tor
Filed Under: Sci-Fi
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
9 |
| Entertainment..... |
7 |
| Depth..... |
10 |
The best science fiction is the sort that goes out of its way to create an intricate, fully realized world that is both exciting to explore as a reader and comments on contemporary society at the same time. To those ends, Quantum Thief is one of the most successful pieces of sci-fi that I’ve ever encountered. The ideas in this book are dense–it’s certainly not a breezy read–but if you hang with it, the payoff is worth the effort.
It does take some hanging with, though. Many of the ideas and even some of the settings are fairly abstract, and it will take a little while fro the reader to get oriented and be able to understand exactly what is happening where. This is because the book is oozing with post-humanism concepts. It opens in a psychic prison of sorts, where a former thief named Jean le Flambeur is faced with the daily dilemma of either killing himself or being killed by a copy of himself. A roguish girl, Mieli, and her slutty spacecraft (bear with me) spring Jean from prison and take him to a city on Mars called the Oubliette, where they plan to pull off a major (and mysterious) heist.
This is where things really open up conceptually. …
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By Sean Clark, on April 9th, 2013 [I love games, but the older and busier I get, the less time I have to play them. Being as book-minded as I am, I’m mostly drawn to games with compelling and intricate stories. In this column I share some of my game playing experiences that I think might be of interest to fellow book nerds. You can read previous installments here.]
I came across a couple indie games–if you want to call them that, there’s not much playing–and was struck in such a way that I wanted to talk about it. It’s going to get a little heavy from here, so heads up.
I have major depressive disorder. It’s something I’ve dealt with pretty much my entire adult life; sometimes I’m able to cope with it well, and other times I’ll go through extended periods of struggle that are as seemingly endless as George R. R. Martin’s winters.
One of the most difficult hurdles of depression, and what make it a real son of a bitch, is that it runs counter to logic. I’m perfectly aware if I’m being too hard on myself, or if I’m making a decision I know I’ll regret, or that I should be finding pleasure in certain things. I can sit down and think or write about it rationally. Then I won’t follow through with any plans to adjust things, at least not when I’m in the depths of an episode. It’s like my id locks me in a box and puts my body on autopilot toward a brick wall. I scream at myself inside my head to pay attention and change course, but the rest of me isn’t listening.
Feeling helpless inside your own body is a horrible experience. And it helps perpetuate the negative emotions, pushing you down even deeper, convinced of your ineffectual helplessness. Usually I am able to wrest back control and swerve at the last minute, but not everyone is so lucky to miss that wall.
Actual Sunlight
2013, Will O’Neill
Available for: PC
Actual Sunlight was created by one man, and the whole thing will take you about a half hour start to finish. (Unfortunately you need Windows to run it currently.) It tells the story of a young man, Evan, who suffers from depression. You guide him as he goes to work, rides out the day, goes home, gets drunk and eats junk food, and repeats it all the next day. You control Evan with the arrows on your keyboard, but very few options are put before you. You have to go to work. You have to talk to your boss. You have to stop at the store for junk food and video games, despite Evan’s narration telling you how much he really doesn’t want to be doing that.
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By Sean Clark, on April 4th, 2013 [I’ve been making an effort to catch up on classic genre writing that I probably should have read as a kid, but for whatever reason didn’t. There’s not much use in writing reviews of 60 year old books, so I’ll write them up under this column instead. Follow it here.]
 Published in 1956, The City and the Stars is actually a substantial revision of Clarke’s very first novel, Against the Fall of Night. This is the first of Clarke’s books that I’ve ever read–though I love Kubrick’s 2001, which is based on a Clarke novel). What I loved about this book, and what has drawn me toward reading classic genre novels in general, is the balance between sheer creativity and devotion to scientific plausibility.
Clarke’s ideas flirt with the edge of possibility. And he was acutely aware of this. Take a look at his now somewhat famous Three Laws of science fiction:
Clarke’s Three Laws
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When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.
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The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.
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Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
The first two are astute and hard to argue. But the third really puts a finger on good science fiction, though the phenomenon depends wholly on who or what is observing the magical technology. (E.g. we know there’s no sorcery involved in television, but ever seen a dog run behind a TV looking for the tiny horses that just ran off-screen?) …
Continue reading »
By Sean Clark, on April 3rd, 2013 [In this feature, we highlight a handful of the best book reviews appearing over the weekend in major newspapers. Follow it here.]
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Life After Life, by Jill McCorkle. Reviewed by Ron Charles (Washington Post).
McCorkle (who’s name is endlessly fun to say) is known for her somewhat quirky short stories. I saw her read some a few years ago and quite enjoyed it. This novel doesn’t stray far from the mold, as it’s basically a linked set of short stories. The book (which has the same title as another anticipated book this month) follows the many inhabitants of an assisted living retirement center. Odds are the book balances funny antics–these debaucherous places are STD hotbeds–with sad encounters with mortality. (“If parts of the novel read like a needlepoint sampler, other parts read like needlepoint graffiti.”) Well-balanced, that could make for a good read.
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A Tale for the Time Being, by Ruth Ozeki. Reviewed by Lisa Schwarzbaum (New York Times).
I tend to not like when books are built around novelist protagonists, though this one does seems to be more purposefully a veiled memoir, and a thoughtful reflection on Ozeki’s life experience. If it’s well written, that’s something I can get on board with. Also, the premise made me think of Weezer, who I used to like before they decided to suck.
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Quickly: (Sorry for the short installment, I’m pretty slammed this week and haven’t had much time to read the Internet.) The Magic Circle sounds like it could be good if it doesn’t suck, but it seems likely to suck. Here’s a round-up of new baseball books, the one on expansion teams is the most interesting to me. Looks like Nico was right to be optimistic about the other Life After Life.
By Sean Clark, on March 29th, 2013 In like a lion?
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The Round House
adult coming of age
voice as good as Oscar Wao‘s
deserves its prizes
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The Life and Death of Poetry
elegant poems
author has a pornstar name
but they don’t write verse
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Songs That Saved Your Life
Smiths fans: hop on board
gets kind of repetitive
rah rah, so it goes
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Constellation Games
in Boing Boing we trust?
wild sci-fi book appears!
this one’s worth a read
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There Once Lived a Woman Who Seduced Her Sister’s Husband and He Hanged Himself
follow up stories
awesome title 2 for 2
not as impressive
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Seduction of the Innocent
pulp mystery fare
comics insiders thriller
rooted in the facts
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Private Eye #1
comics fans take ear
a pay-what-you-want-to book
you should pay a lot
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By Sean Clark, on March 21st, 2013 [In this feature, we highlight a handful of the best book reviews appearing over the weekend in major newspapers. Follow it here.]
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 Middle Men, by Jim Gavin. Reviewed by Katherine A. Powers (Barnes and Noble Review).
I’m always in the market for new short story collections, especially by writers I’ve never heard of. And if there’s one thing I like those stories to feature, it’s talking animals. If I can have two things, make them talking animals and a “sharp eye for fatuousness.” Unfortunately it doesn’t appear any of Gavin’s stories feature the former, but the latter, along with the rest of Powers’s praise makes me thing this story set might be worth a go all the same.
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Present Shock, by Douglas Rushkoff. Reviewed by Janet Maslin (New York Times).
Technology has made truly incredible advances in the last 20 years. Set against the past century, or even against all of human history, it’s not crazy to say it might be the most rapid advancement we have yet achieved. So how does this affect us? Rushkoff’s book addresses this, and it appears to be quite interesting–if a tad depressing. Have we really “lost our capacity to absorb traditional narrative” as a people and is an “eternal present” really our obsession? If you’re feeling philosophical and a little gloomy, this looks to be a good pick.
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Percival Everett by Virgil Russell, by Percival Everett. Reviewed by Mark Athitakis (Washington Post).
If you’re looking for a little postmodernism to cheer you up (and who isn’t?), the guy who wrote I Am Not Sidney Poitier–which I haven’t read but have heard is good–has a new book out. This book sounds smart, funny, and sad. It’s sort of about an addled old man telling stories to his son, and then also sort of about…other stuff I guess. Like most postmodernism, this book is probably a lot of work. But sometimes the books that challenge their readers are the most worthwhile.
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Quickly: I don’t think Demetri Martin is as funny as everybody else seems to think, and if the cover is anything to go by, I don’t think the drawings in his book of drawings are funny either. Honestly, I don’t really give a shit about the Tournament of Books, but if you do, you might find this interesting. (Sidenote: Rosencrans Baldwin sort of looks like Rick Santorum.)
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