Category Archives: Books

Comments on Books I’ve read.

Chapter 2

Chapter 2   One hundred hours before the election, the Vice President and Jack were together.  They were in a large room packed with other people, but Jack and the Veep knew who mattered. The ride over to Superior had … Continue reading

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Thrown Under the Train (My NaNoWriMo Novel)

Chapter 1 Up ahead, he could see the railroad crossing arm was down.  Coasting downhill the last couple hundred yards, the red lights flashed and the warning bell rang its droning, “Din din din din din.”  The line of cars … Continue reading

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Big Two-Hearted River

David’s comment on my previous entry prompts me to remember that I’m way behind in my book reviews.  Last summer, among other things, I read all of The Nick Adams Stories,  including “Big Two-Hearted River.” which was by far the best of … Continue reading

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Lives on the Boundary

The last book on my sabbatical reading list was Mike Rose’s Lives on the Boundary. Part memoir, part rhetorical theory, part public policy polemic, and always engaging, re-reading it was well worth my time. I’d forgotten that CCCC ’93 in … Continue reading

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Writing Partnerships: Service-Learning in Composition

Thomas Deans is one of only a few SL/Composition gurus that’s publishing, and Writing Partnerships is a great resource for instructors like me at two-year institutions like Lake Superior College. The book is both theoretical and practical, and Deans uses … Continue reading

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The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

After I got off the plane in New Orleans a few weeks ago, I proceeded to get on the wrong shuttle, which took me to the wrong hotel (glazed with rain water, beside the white chickens). Turns out that Hilton … Continue reading

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Out of the Silent Planet

After reading Surprised by Joy, I got a hankering to reread C.S. Lewis’ Out of the Silent Planet, which I’d enjoyed in my youth. I had this notion that it might fit into my Science Fiction class next fall. Upon … Continue reading

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Surprised by Joy

I was in a religious book store with my brother and sister-in-law who were in possession of a 40% off coupon expiring that day. It was clear that I would commit a sin if I didn’t save some money, and … Continue reading

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Sabbatical Notes From Underground: Writing with Power

Part of my sabbatical plan was also to read Peter Elbow’s cookbook, which my brother Karl told me years ago was the best book about writing he ever read. Granted, it may have been the only book about writing he … Continue reading

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Flight

Sherman Alexie is probably most famous for writing the screenplay to Smoke Signals back in 1998. Since then, he’s been doing some other things, like competing in the World Heavyweight Poetry Bout and doing stand up comedy. But 2007 saw … Continue reading

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