Monthly Archives: October 2012

His name was writ in oil: Philip Levine’s industrial sublime

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Roy White

People spend a lot more time earning a living than having sex, but you certainly wouldn’t know it from reading poetry.  You can flip through most anthologies without finding many songs in praise of labor.  There might be a bit … Continue reading →

Posted in poetry, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Oh Have You Seen Lydia?

Posted on October 4, 2012 by Roy White

Herodotus It may seem odd that Herodotus, writing in the 5th century BCE about the war between Greeks and Persians that took place in his father’s lifetime, should trace the conflict back to the Trojan War, which, to the extent … Continue reading →

Posted in fiction, Uncategorized | Tagged | 3 Comments

Statistical Dead Meat?

Posted on October 2, 2012 by Roy White

I turned on NPR yesterday to hear that “Colorado is now a statistical dead heat” in the presidential race.  I don’t know why journalists love that phrase so much—I suppose it gratifies their desire for a close, dramatic contest.  In … Continue reading →

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The thing that ate Tony Hillerman

Posted on October 1, 2012 by Roy White

I was drawn to James Doss’s Grandmother Spider because its themes and setting (to judge by the blurb) reminded me of Tony Hillerman’s excellent novels about the Navajo Tribal Police.  This is what I found on the opening page: To … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments