Steven Ray started reading Things that Can and Cannot Be Said by Arundhati Roy
Essays and conversations in which Roy and Cusack reflect on their meeting with Daniel Ellsberg and Edward Snowden in 2014.
Reviews and Comments
I’m interested in a multitude of things, including social justice, socialism, history, poetry, magical realism (fiction), capitalism, race and class struggle, plus stuff like wine, baseball and music.
So mostly non-fiction, though I read maybe two novels per year and maybe one poetry collection.
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Steven Ray wants to read Feminist Theory by bell hooks
A sweeping examination of the core issues of sexual politics, bell hooks' new book Feminist …
Very much looking forward to this one.
Steven Ray wants to read Pushcart Prize XLV by Bill Henderson
This yearly collection of award-winning poetry, fiction, essays and memoirs is always a great read.
Steven Ray wants to read New music, new allies by Amy C. Beal (California studies in 20th-century music ;)
This copy of Amy Beal’s history of American experimental music in Germany was owned by Tom Verlaine. I purchased it from a Brooklyn book store. :-)
Steven Ray wants to read Selected poems by Federico García Lorca
This copy of Garcia Lorca’s poems was owned by Tom Verlaine. I purchased it from a Brooklyn book store. :-)
Steven Ray finished reading The white album by Joan Didion
Another set of semi-autobiographical stories originally published in one magazine or another. I find Joan Didion’s writing to have a mysterious pull on me. Almost mesmerizing in its phrasing, its stories pulled from her life, about things both mundane and surreal. I found this set to be slightly less compelling than that of Slouching Towards Bethlehem, but I was grateful to read it nonetheless.
Steven Ray rated The white album: 4 stars
Steven Ray wants to read Essential Essays, Volume 1 by Stuart Hall
From his arrival in Britain in the 1950s and involvement in the New Left, to …
One of the key scholars of the Intellectual Left in Britain, Stuart Hall wrote on culture, class, race, representation and politics.
Steven Ray started reading The white album by Joan Didion
I adore her writing. Really looking forward to this one.
Steven Ray finished reading Towards a Green Democratic Revolution by Chantal Mouffe
I enjoyed this book for the most part. I think her argument has value, which is to say that the Left tends to leave stirring the electorate’s passions to the far right, which is why they sometimes have difficulty getting people to the polls. At times, I felt that her phrasing was overly formal and it made me feel like I was taking a graduate course in Political Science. At other times though, the text was more accessible and enjoyable. Overall, a good introduction to her writing.
Steven Ray rated Towards a Green Democratic Revolution: 4 stars
Steven Ray started reading Towards a Green Democratic Revolution by Chantal Mouffe
Mouffe’s latest is a call to combine the struggles against authoritarianism with the struggle to save the planet. A new author for me. Looking forward to it.
Steven Ray finished reading Beyond Culture by Edward T. Hall
TABLE OF CONTENTS: The paradox of culture -- Man as extension -- Consistency and life …
A really enlightening read detailing how the culture we are born into profoundly influences our interpersonal relations, our personal space, our priorities, even how we think. Bridging gaps between cultures can be an almost insurmountable task, though it must start with becoming more fully aware of our own. Thought provoking, even 48 years after it was first published.
Steven Ray rated Beyond Culture: 4 stars
Beyond Culture by Edward T. Hall
TABLE OF CONTENTS: The paradox of culture -- Man as extension -- Consistency and life -- Hidden culture -- Rhythm …
Steven Ray started reading Beyond Culture by Edward T. Hall
TABLE OF CONTENTS: The paradox of culture -- Man as extension -- Consistency and life …
An anthropologist, Hall’s work sheds light on how individual cultures communicate by use of body language and other non-verbal communication, their use of personal space and how their identity is influenced by their culture. His work was thought to aid in cross-cultural communication and was respected in both anthropological and psychological fields of study. Beyond Culture was included in a list of books which were recommended by Brian Eno. You can find the list on openculture.com.