J.G. Ballard- As Good As Dead…
Saturday, February 16th by Shane
Not super psyched about it
He’s dying of cancer, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to keep him from writing. A new memoir is out by Ballard, and The Telegraph talks not only about how good the book is, but also how fascinating the author’s life has been. I’m usually pretty into being a contarian, but I must admit this guy’s life is really something to behold. And a hell of a lot more interesting than that stupid Crash book.
The Guardian talks about psychoanalysts and why fiction writers hate them. The article is a lengthy discussion how psychoanalysis has been demeaned through the years by authors and how the tide may soon be turning. They theorize that Freud and his ilk are no longer the clinical terrorists they once were. Though both professions are working towards the same goal- figuring out human nature- it seems that no matter how few people read, psychoanalysis is even worse off.
On a similar note, Paper Cuts talks about why evolution has allowed literature. The article is small but leads to what seems to be a fantastic book called Comeuppance: Costly Signaling, Altruistic Punishment, and Other Biological Components of Fiction.
Mark Sarvas from The Elegant Variation notes that a galley of his book Harry, Revised has found its way to Ebay. Lucky.
And finally, Ed sharpens his claws again for what he sees as a totally lame cronyistic review. The executive editor of NYTBR has put out a book and surprisingly NYTBR loves it. Really, really loves it. My only contention with Ed’s rant is that while I think that the book was given a review that it possibly didn’t deserve, I must question if this was because saying bad things about a book praising Nelson Mandela (the book’s subject matter) may be as off-limits as trashing your boss.
