By: Don Thompson
For an eye-opening study of the market for art and why some artists are paid
millions and others starve, this is a fascinating read. Full of gory detail about
how dealers, auction houses, collectors and artists operate.
Reviewer: David
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By: Alireza Mashayekhi, Ata Ebtekar
Some very fine electronic music from Persia. A compilation spanning 40
years.
Reviewer: Tommy
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By: Bryan Yansky
Simon hates his life – he doesn’t get along with his adopted parents, his
girlfriend just dumped him, he’s been in trouble with the police for possession of
(and selling) pot, and he hates school. In a fit of desperation, he finds the name
of his birth parents, steals his father’s car, and leaves Iowa in a cloud of smoke.
He hits the road in search of his dream “perfect” parents, picking up all manner of
interesting characters along the way. This book chronicles his travels and his
parent quest, which brings him here to Austin. We get a great picture of what Austin
was like in 1979, when the story takes place. On 6th street, for instance, Simon
encounters a street person who asks if Simon knows him. Simon shrugs. “I’m Jesus
Christ the Savior. I died for your sins. I can’t even afford a cup of coffee. Don’t
you think you could spare a couple of cents for the Savior? Don’t you think that’s
the least you can do?” . . . I reached in my pocket and gave him what I had. He made
a bugle sound by blowing through his closed hand. He turned to me. “May I be with
you,” he said. And yes, as you may have guessed, Austin is the pretty girl capital
of the world.
Reviewer: AJ Johnson
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By: Camilleri, Andrea
Camilleri's Inspector Montalbano series now numbers six or seven titles, and this
is one of the best. Originally written in Italian and set in Sicily, there is no
shortage of great scenery, good food, sly politics, corruption, and fatal mistakes.
As a good Sicilian cop, Inspector Montalbano doesn't reveal much as the story
develops - to the reader, his colleagues, or his girlfriend. Yet he is always
conscious of the multiple layers of meaning in the actions and words of his
superiors and his suspects alike. In keeping with the setting, there are classical
themes at work - notably tragedy and fate. Good and bad people alike overreach,
suffer, and occasionally pay a terrible price, or make fools of
themselves.Camilleri's characters, always strongly described, also share a streak of
rough and ancient comedy. As one translation of Artistotle's Poetics puts it, "the
ludicrous being merely a subdivision of the ugly", there is plenty of ugliness in
Sicilian life, and Camilleri uses it for great comic effect. Readers of Donna Leon's
books set in and around Venice will find here the antipode of northern Italian life.
The only disappointing thing about this and all of the Inspector Montalbano books is
that they end too soon.
Reviewer: Dennis Trombatore
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By: Nina Maria Martínez
Nina Maria Martínez’s meandering novel is a delight. It follows its two
twenty-something heroines and an assortment of wacky secondary characters through a
sleepy California town, Lava Landing, located at the base of an inactive volcano.
Natalie and Consuelo provide necessary relief for fans of women’s fiction who are
tired of chick lit. The girls sport Payless shoes instead of Manolo Blahniks, wear
K-mart not Versace and there’s not a glamorous media job to be found. The pace of
the novel, like that of its setting is slow. This is no page-turner, but a book to
spend time with. The hardcover version of the book is a work of art. It’s packed
with bonus features such as colored pages, Lava Landing themed Lotería cards and
artifacts such as menus, paper dolls and letters.
Reviewer: Pamela Mann
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By: Matthew Monteith
Matthew Monteith’s images of the people and the environment of the Czech Republic
are provocative. They both pull you in and keep you out. Some landscapes are
pastoral and others are industrial. Portraits of individuals look right at you but
you have no idea what they are thinking. I was mesmerized by the images in this
book.
Reviewer: Laura
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By: Ann Marie Fleming
Interesting glimpse into the world during WWI-WWII and especially vaudeville life
during this time. p.s. Great fashions and costumes!
Reviewer: Beth
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By: Ann Marie Fleming
Interesting glimpse into the world during WWI-WWII and especially vaudeville life
during this time. p.s. Great fashions and costumes!
Reviewer: Beth
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By: Zbig Rybczynski
Some of the most genuinely enjoyable experimental film and videowork, bar
none.
Reviewer: Tommy
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By: Sandra S. Philips
Recommended by Adam.
Reviewer: Adam
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