John Irving rallies the defense: “The fulminating in the German media has been obnoxious. Grass is a daring writer, and he has always been a daring man.” (via Galleycat) Guy Dammann suggests that for some readers, Grass’ politics are inseperable from his writing and Stephen Mitchelmore agrees–to a certain degree, as he prefers a sparser aesthetic (the comparison to Aharon Appelfeld is both apt and instructive).
Speaking of questionable ethics, someone call in the lawyers! Err, I mean, the legal fiction writers (via Booksquare).
One of my philosophy professors in college was fond of saying that he wished he were a Platonist because Plato is wrong, but in such an interesting way. (via AL Daily)
The Beats are back! Or at least the popular conception of their fashion, anyway. (via Syntax of Things)
Walter Benjamin even got the munchies: “I had been suddenly unable to still the pangs of hunger that overwhelmed me late one night in my room. It seemed advisable to buy a bar of chocolate.” (via The Elegant Variation)
And because all this drug talk has me feeling like I ought to do something good for society: Kids in Need, Books Indeed, a charity organization for getting books into the hands of underprivileged Florida youth (via The Emerging Writers Network). Check out the website, host a Write-A-Thon, make a donation, whatever floats your boat. Let’s help the next generation of readers.