September 9, 2016
How To
Who said—and I’m woefully paraphrasing—that each poem teaches you to read it in the reading of it? Or each poet teaches you to understand their personal language within the poems themselves? I […]
June 24, 2014
Fundamental, and Also Fun
In Lorrie Moore’s short story “Charades,” the central character Therese recalls a conversation with her brother Andrew: Last year, at least, they had joked about their upbringing. “I scarcely remember Dad […]
November 30, 2013
The Twain (and Wilde) Shall Meet
Did Mark Twain and Oscar Wilde ever share a bottle or a joke? That’s a question I’ve been trying to answer for the last hour. Wilde’s literary ascent in the […]
November 28, 2013
More Life
One of my daughters turns ten today. I’m not sure how much we’ll celebrate, seeing that it’s also Thanksgiving and the first day of Chanukah. Still, ten feels important—it’s the […]