Tag Archives: Annie Dillard

Fan Mail, Reversed

Circa September, 1976, I received an astonishing postcard in the mail. Its handwriting was unfamiliar, the postmark said “Bellingham, Washington,” and it was signed, apparently, by Annie Dillard, my favorite writer. Or certainly one of the top five. I knew … Continue reading

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Truth or Consequences?

How true to life should a memoir be? Is bending the facts or changing chronology allowed? How about just making stuff up? Many of us remember the controversy arising from James Frey’s 2003 memoir A Million Little Pieces, which, after … Continue reading

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Required Reading

I haven’t read many books recently because I’ve been reading Bleak House, Charles Dickens’s 800-page novel of 1853. It was supposed to be my winter break project, but I started it late, after New Years, and it’s seeped into the … Continue reading

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Incunabulum

Tonight we’re addressing Christmas cards. After thirty-plus years, we have the routine down. John does his people, and I do mine and I can’t tell you exactly how we know whose names are whose. I rely on my old, water-stained … Continue reading

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Animal + Music Book Titles

Awhile ago, I reviewed a book for the Plain Dealer called Frog Music* and soon after read a book with a similar title. My reactions to the two were very different, however. Emma Donoghue, an Irish writer who lives in … 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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