Sunday, July 31, 2011

Tremble: Poems
(CD Wright, 60pp)
I've a friend who admires a different poet, last name Wright (James?), but I read through this trying to understand how this writer could have a real hook. For me, she didn't, but I did give it a try.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Drive
(Daniel Pink, 5:47)
Somewhat skimpy, and yet it deserves to be read. As a grad student of Mark Lepper's, I'm amazed that both Alfie Kohn 20 years ago, and Pink today, have re-mined Mark's research (along with the work of Deci & Ryan) in a way that continues to astonish the business-y behaviorist types. This short book begins to repeat itself toward the end, when the "exercises" reprise ideas already (or just recently) covered, without much in the way of transformation, just repeated exhortation (e.g., Have FedEx days!).

Friday, July 22, 2011

Unfamiliar Fishes
(Sara Vowell, 7:40, stopped after 4)
It's a crime that America hijacked the Hawaiian state. Up until this book, I've cheered on Ms Vowell's nerdy fascination with history. But, perhaps because I've never been to HI, this book fatigued me before I reached the end. I just couldn't care about the little state, even though her writing continues to encode loads of wry humor and wisdom.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Bob Dylan in America
(Sean Wilentz, 11:50)
I read half of this before, on paper, but it was a pleasure to revisit the entire work. I was persuaded this time to buy Blind Willy McTell (both the song by Dylan, and the oevre by the original bluesman).

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Little Brother
(Cory Doctorow, 11:54)
This was free from Sync, an audio community. The book is preferable to its alter ancestor, 1984, and has an energy and hopefulness that is synonymous with Cory Doctorow's unique voice.

Tuesday, July 05, 2011

Founding Documents
Paine, Madison, Jefferson (1:54)
Interesting to listen to the original pretexts for the Declaration of Independence, as well as the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. Not as persuasive as I once found them, but they've taken a few body blows in the past decade or so (starting with Bush coup in Supreme Court).