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12-01-11: Kim Stanley Robinson Reads at SF in SF on November 12, 2011
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Revolution 2312

Forget genre, forget the future. In the very real, very present present, Kim Stanley Robinson is clearly one of the most important writers in America. It does not matter whether he's finding the gentle comedy in global climate change, the future in Galileo's past, or an Islamic world that never was, Robinson manages the unique feat of capturing imagination, technology and stunning literary power in every work he writes.

At SF in SF early last month, he read from his forthcoming novel, 2312. The genesis of the novel is the result of a series of consequences that seems like something from one of his novels; an oddball setup and reaction that he explains with great relish. It's fun to hear how great literature gets going, especially from so skilled a storyteller. He's just as good talking about his own life as he is talking about a new civilization on Mars.

His new novel is really going to be something special; it's a bit of a stretch for him, as he has never before written so far in the future. He read several segments, from lyrical to humorous, and you can hear by the manner in which he reads the work that it is something special.

I've set up two separate podcasts from this reading. The first, which you can find by following this link to the MP3 audio file, is the whole reading. The second is an excerpt from the reading, which he does with the help of Cecilia Holland. It is so eerily and powerfully prescient that it deserves it's own airing, so you can listen to it again and again, as Robinson gives his thoughts on revolution. You can find the Robinson-Holland Revolution by following this link to the second MP3 podcast file for today.



11-30-11: Three Books With Alan Cheuse

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Alan Garner, 'Red Shift' ; Stephen King, '11/22/63' ; Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan, 'The Night Eternal'

I always enjoy my conversations with Alan Cheuse, but I have to say, when the choices are this delectable, then it is especially fun. A while back, Alan asked me about a book that neither of us had heard of, but came to us via a source no less esteemed than the New York Review of Books. That's 'Red Shift' by Alan Garner, a book that has literally stood the test of time.

First published in the UK in 1973, it's a series of three linked stories that themselves span time. It's a gorgeously evoked story of land, of landscape and humanity. In today's publishing world, it would probably earn the label of slipstream; so far as I'm concerned it fits in the genre of books that I present on this website, to wit, books worth your valuable reading time.

Next we talked about Stephen King's latest, '11/22/63,' some 800 pages of time-travel-enabled Americana that uses a touch of genre to inform an enjoyable and eventually powerful, poignant emotional arc. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised that the esteemed critic actually agreed with my take on King as an American Dickens.

And finally, we talked about the finale for The Strain trilogy by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan. Their resolution caught us both unaware, and I think that speaks to my mind, to the quality of their work. We talked about the book in relation to others in the vampire genre; I'll leave those titles to your imagination, which you can satisfy by following this link to the MP3 audio file.




11-29-11 UPDATE: Podcast Update: Time to Read, Episode 20: Charles Frazier, 'Nightwoods'
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Here's the twentieth episode of my new series of podcasts, which I'm calling Time to Read. The podcasts/radio broadcasts will be of books worth your valuable reading time. I'll try to keep the reports under four minutes, for a radio-friendly format. If you want to run them on your show or podcast, let me know.

My hope is that in under four minutes I can offer readers a concise review and an opportunity to hear the author read from or speak about the work. I'm hoping to offer a new one every week.

The nineteenth episode is a look at Charles Frazier and his new book, 'Nightwoods.'

Here's a link to the MP3 audio file of Episode 20: Charles Frazier, 'Nightwoods.'




11-28-11: A 2011 Interview With Scott Wallace

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"Within months of first contact, these groups experience a huge die-off."

—Scott Wallace

Most interviews are carefully planned campaigns, with strict reading schedules, email reminders of dates and times, and everything set out in a series of steps to help me prevent embarrassment when I sit down to talk.

But then there are the rare arrivals, or nearly missed opportunities that result in a sort of blitzkrieg approach. Just as Scott Wallace found himself pulled into his journey to the Amazon at the last minute, I found myself setting up an interview with Wallace at the last minute. Fortunately, the book was something of a page-turner, and I was able to read it, enjoy it, and get myself to the interview with enough preparation to conduct a fairly lucid interview.

That said, Wallace himself is an excellent speaker, and he indeed has a grand adventure to talk about. But there's a lot more than adventure in 'TheUnconquered,' and that's what makes the book so good. Wallace skillfully weave in history and back story so that readers have a good idea why he's part of a mission that seems to have a conflict at its heart.

And then there are the bullet ants, and a host of critters that make life very uncomfortable for a group of men who might in other circumstances end up in a barroom brawl. You can hear Wallace's story by following this link to the MP3 audio file.




New to the Agony Column

09-05-15: Commentary : Susan Casey Listens to 'Voices in the Ocean' : Science, Empathy and Self

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Susan Casey : "...the reporting for this book was emotionally difficult at times..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 213: Susan Casey : Voices in the Ocean: A Journey into the Wild and Haunting World of Dolphins

08-24-15: Commentary : Felicia Day Knows 'You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)' : Transformative Technology

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Felicia Day : "I think you have to be attention curators for audience in every way."

08-22-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 212: Felicia Day : You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)

08-21-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report : Senator Claire McCaskill is 'Plenty Ladylike' : Internalizing Determination to Overcome Sexism [Incudes Time to Read EP 211: Claire McCaskill, Plenty Ladylike, plus A 2015 Interview with Senator Claire McCaskill]

Agony Column Podcast News Report : Emily Schultz Unleashes 'The Blondes' : A Cure by Color [Incudes Time to Read EP 210: Emily Schultz, The Blondes, plus A 2015 Interview with Emily Schultz]

08-10-15:Agony Column Podcast News Report : In Memory of Alan Cheuse : Thank you Alan, and Your Family, for Everything

07-11-15: Commentary : Robert Repino Morphs 'Mort(e)' : Housecat to Harbinger of the Apocalypse

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Robert Repino : "...an even bigger threat. which is us, the humans..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 208: Robert Repino : Mort(e)

07-05-15: Commentary : Dr. Michael Gazzaniga Tells Tales from Both Sides of the Brain : A Life in Neuroscience Reveals the Life of Science

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Michael Gazzaniga : "We made the first observation and BAM there was the disconnection effect..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 208: Michael Gazzaniga : Tales from Both Sides of the Brain: A Life in Neuroscience

06-26-15: Commentary : Neal Stephenson Crafts an Eden for 'Seveneves' : Blow It Up and Start All Over Again

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Neal Stephenson : "...and know that you're never going to se a tree again..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 207: Neal Stephenson : Seveneves

06-03-15: Commentary : Dan Simmons Opens 'The Fifth Heart' : Having it Every Way

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Dan Simmons : "...yes, they really did bring those bombs..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 206: Dan Simmons : The Fifth Heart

05-23-15: Commentary : John Waters Gets 'Carsick' : Going His Way

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with John Waters : "...you change how you would be in real life...”

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 205: John Waters : Carsick

05-09-15: Commentary : Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD and 'Shrinks' : A Most Fashionable Take on the Human Mind

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD : "..its influence to be as hegemonic as it was..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 204: Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD : Shrinks: The Untold Story of Psychiatry

04-29-15: Commentary : Barney Frank is 'Frank' : Interpersonally Ours

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Barney Frank : "...while you're trying to change it, don't ignore it..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 203: Barney Frank : Frank: A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage

04-21-15: Commentary : Kazuo Ishiguro Unearths 'The Buried Giant' : The Mist of Myth and Memory

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Kazuo Ishiguro : ".... by the time I was writing this novel, the lines between what was fantasy and what was real had blurred for me..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 202: Kazuo Ishiguro : The Buried Giant

04-17-15: Commentary : Erik Larson Follows a 'Dead Wake' : Countdown to Destiny

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Erik Larson : "...said to have been found in the arms of a dead German sailor..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 201: Erik Larson : Dead Wake

04-15-15: Commentary : Peter Bell Reflects 'A Certain Slant of Light' : Strange Stories of Modern Scholars

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Peter Bell : "...I looked up some of the old books..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 200: Peter Bell : Strange Epiphanies and A Certain Slant of Light

03-14-15: Commentary : Marc Goodman Foresees 'Future Crimes' : Exponential Potential

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Marc Goodman : "...every physical object around us is being transformed, one way or another, into an information technology..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 199: Marc Goodman : Future Crimes: Everything Is Connected, Everyone Is Vulnerable and What We Can Do About It

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