Marvin Olasky addresses Calvin on the Christian meaning of public life.
Category Archives: Authors
Oh, You Wrote a Book?
Published author Andy Crouch posted a letter he wrote to soon-to-be-published author Adam McHugh, saying it’s great that your book is coming out, but don’t think anyone will care about it for a while.
“What will be a big deal,” he writes, “hopefully, over the coming months, are individual letters, emails, conversations and even (we hope!) reviews from grateful readers. This is what makes it worth doing, in my opinion—the amazing chance to meet people for whom your words were genuinely, even dramatically, helpful.”
And avoid your book’s Amazon ranking. It’s pointless.
Oxford American Interview with Sam Tanenhaus
The Oxford American interviewer sums up some of Tenenhaus’ thoughts in his new book on conservative politics: “Knee-jerk Oppositionism, in an urgent time when Americans must find common ground, whether they like it or not, to subdue overwhelming problems, is most worrisome. A wise man once said that you do not prove superior intelligence merely by finding fault with everything in the world.”
Tanenhaus is editor of The New York Times Book Review and talks about his book and his role at the Times. (via The Literary Saloon)
Live Q&A with “Jabez” Author Bruce Wilkinson
I’ve thought about avoiding any posts on this, but WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers is doing something too interesting to ignore. Bruce Wilkinson, who made a huge splash with the book The Prayer of Jabez (and only ripples with follow-up books), has a new book which appears to focus on themes similar to “Jabez.” You Were Born for This talks about everyday miracles and the idea that you and I “can be a ‘Delivery Guy’ from heaven in such universally significant arenas of life as finances, practical help, relationships, purpose and spiritual growth” if we “are willing to learn the ‘protocol of heaven.'”
Yeah, I don’t like the look of that either, but Mr. Wilkinson is going to be online tomorrow evening at 7:00 Eastern in a live Q&A to discuss themes in the book. Questions will be taken through the chat room.
Marilynne Robinson
A brief interview with the author of Gilead and Home, and someone, someone, had to bring up Michael Servetus.
Happy Birthday to H.G.Wells
Today in 1866, H.G. Wells, who said, “I must confess that my imagination refuses to see any sort of submarine doing anything but suffocating its crew and floundering at sea,” who said, “Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race,” was born. Wells had little imagination for submarines and also for hell. He said, “Sailors ought never to go to church. They ought to go to hell, where it is much more comfortable.” I suppose he was returning his eyewitness report from hell when we said that. Otherwise, how could he know?
For his birthday, here’s a collection of book covers for War of the Worlds.
‘Horrifying and Humorous’ Musical Madness
Don’t Criticize Those Peaceful People
If they want to abuse their women, let them.
Michael Weiss writes, “Misogyny as multiculturalism,” in response to media flak over an academic book on religious abuse and suppression of women. The left in the British press (at least some of them) are afraid of Muslims and will self-censor just to get along. “Cowardice gets dressed up as cultural sensitivity;” Weiss explains, “an eagerness to please semi-literate reactionaries becomes a form of willing internal exile, whereby independence of one’s own mind is held in suspicion, if not thought to be lethal in itself.”
Barely Able to Say Hello in 700 Words
The Rap Sheet has a brief profile on author Lisa Scottoline, whose most recent thriller is Look Again. It’s about a mother who discovers her adopted child may have been kidnapped before being put up for adoption.
Could Ya Write a Bit Faster?
James Patterson has an agreement with Hatchette Book Group to write (or something like writing) 17 books by the end of 2012. Seventeen books. I’m sure he has some of them mostly written already, because I have a hard time believing a book written from scratch would be worth reading. But then, Wodehouse wrote one book a year for a while, and many of his were terrific. Is Patterson as good as Wodehouse?