From NYRB, the Lost Jewish Culture: Harold Bloom reviews The Lost Jewish Culture The Dream of the Poem: Hebrew Poetry from Muslim and Christian Spain, 950–1492; and Racing Against Reality: A review of Falling Man by Don DeLillo. The playful literary legend: John Updike, now 75, says he "lucked out and became a writer," but his distinguished career says otherwise. When it comes to humor, Woody Allen dishes up a perfect deli mix in his new collection of sketches and stories, Mere Anarchy. "And that's why you're a blogger and not a writer": New Yorker writer gets touchy in the comments section of a blog.
From The New York Review of Magazines, an interview with Atoosa Rubenstein, from magazine queen to the MySpace scene; and inside the juiced-up, iron-pumped world of bodybuilding magazines. Magazines and newspapers featuring poetry and short works of fiction are to be commended and awarded bonus points for culture. But publishing extracts from novels? It should be prohibited. How long does it take to write a novel? One year is the ambitious target Louise Doughty sets first-time writers in A Novel in a Year, aware that what most will have at the end of 12 months is a start rather than a finished product. A review of Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter; Writer's Coach: An Editor's Guide to Words That Work by Jack Hart; and When You Catch an Adjective, Kill It: The Parts of Speech, for Better and/or Worse by Ben Yagoda.
From 3:AM, a review of The Human War, the most pitch perfect representation of what it is like to live in America in 2007. An interview with author Pete Hamill: Bush and Cheney "didn't grow up in Brooklyn, where you know if you punch a guy in the mouth, he's going to come back with three other guys and punch you back". Anatomy of a row: Christopher and Peter Hitchens are two of Britain's most famous scribes, but they appear to agree on nothing. After their latest public spat, James Macintyre, who has known both brothers for many years, dissects their very odd relationship.
A review of How We Built Britain by David Dimbleby. A review of British Diplomacy: Foreign Secretaries Reflect. A review of The Diana Chronicles by Tina Brown, and more on how Princess Diana brought the British monarchy to the brink of collapse, and more and more. Why Britannia still rules the stage: British theatre has never had it so good. On screen, in plays, and from Broadway to the Oscars, our actors are being feted as never before. We celebrate this remarkable renaissance by bringing together 50 great British actors in a unique portrait, featuring our finest young talents and treasured veterans like Ian McKellen (and part 2 and part 3). Fall From Grace: In 1843, British novelist Grace Aguilar was a household name on both sides of the Atlantic. So how come we've never heard of her?
A review of Queuing for Beginners: The Story of Daily Life from Breakfast to Bedtime. A review of Strange Son: Two Mothers, Two Sons, and the Quest to Unlock the Hidden World of Autism by Portia Iversen. A review of The Empty Nest: 31 Parents Tell the Truth About Relationships, Love, and Freedom After the Kids Fly the Coop. A review of The Sun Farmer: The Story of a Shocking Accident, a Medical Miracle, and a Family's Life-and-Death Decision by Michael McCarthy.
