Category Archives: Books

Green Shoes

Celebrities such a football players are too often in the news for bad reasons, but both my kids have, at various times, alerted me to Brandon Marshall, a Chicago Bears receiver, who’s outed himself as suffering from borderline personality disorder. They know about my … Continue reading

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Gilmour, Eh

Through that chain of connections we call the internet, I happened upon a Canadian controversy. It seems that one David Gilmour, a part-time English professor at the University of Toronto, has outraged a bunch of people by declaring that he’s … Continue reading

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Abundance

I have too many books to read right now. This is my usual condition, but it’s particularly acute right now since my visits to the library this afternoon. I say visits because I had requested books from two different libraries. … Continue reading

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Hurt Like I Do

I get on a Randy Newman kick now and then. Today, playing a Newman cd while I was baking, I was struck by the song “Marie.” Lushly orchestrated, this version features a warm, romantic background, like so many Newman songs, belying … Continue reading

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Good Choices This Weekend

I’ve never seen Richard Pryor’s Which Way Is Up? (1977) and expect to try it at the Cleveland Cinematheque tonight or tomorrow (5:15 and 9:45, respectively), forewarned that it’s raunchy. I don’t think I’ve seen any Richard Pryor movies, in … Continue reading

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Mother, Daughter, Me, and Katie Hafner

A couple weeks ago, the Cleveland Plain Dealer printed my review of Katie Hafner’s new memoir Mother, Daughter, Me. I pitched it to the PD because the mother-daughter angle interests me, and, as it turned out, Katie and I have … Continue reading

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My Parents’ Bookcase

  I’m reading a book called Chaplin and Agee: The Untold Story of the Tramp, the Writer, and the Lost Screenplay by John Wranovics. I have some interest in film and in Charlie Chaplin that’s rubbed off from my film-buff … Continue reading

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Your Weekend Plans

This weekend you can have your mornings and afternoons to yourself. Your evenings belong to me. The Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque offers stellar movies for your enjoyment. I thought My Left Foot (1989) might have been the first film … Continue reading

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Insights from Book Group

Some people question the purpose of book groups. I’ve had people (mostly men, to be honest) ask, “What’s the point? Why not just read the book? Who really cares what anyone else thinks?” Most everyone, however, can comprehend at least … Continue reading

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No Buzz

How do you choose which books to read and which movies to see? All of us are probably somewhat susceptible to “buzz”–the blaring ads and TV talk-show promos and mentions on National Public Radio that make us think we have … Continue reading

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