Take a photo of a barcode or cover
jonscott9's Reviews (211)
Another installment in the long lineage of Oliver's poetry collection, and to that I say, Blest.
This set of verses blends the natural world and the human experience in lovely ways, tho I was struck by there being more poems about love, and love for a specific person seemingly, than in some of her other books I've read. Those were lovely; it all was, and is, and always will be.
This set of verses blends the natural world and the human experience in lovely ways, tho I was struck by there being more poems about love, and love for a specific person seemingly, than in some of her other books I've read. Those were lovely; it all was, and is, and always will be.
Fun, whimsical, tiny poems from the Jazz Age poetess whose work appeared in The New Yorker and Vanity Fair, and whose debut was a full century ago (1926).
There's a classic, rapier wit here at times, and a few meh-inducing moments as well, in the back part of this collection. Overall quite pleasing, and brief, but not pleasing because it's brief, mind you. I love the cover art and was initially pulled in by that when browsing at the Strand bookstore near Union Square in Manhattan. Alternately lighthearted and cynical, tho always with a winking eye. – that's our Dorothy.
There's a classic, rapier wit here at times, and a few meh-inducing moments as well, in the back part of this collection. Overall quite pleasing, and brief, but not pleasing because it's brief, mind you. I love the cover art and was initially pulled in by that when browsing at the Strand bookstore near Union Square in Manhattan. Alternately lighthearted and cynical, tho always with a winking eye. – that's our Dorothy.
It didn't take long to become riveted by this story of a premenopausal woman's divergent, long-mapped and short-lived trip from L.A. to New York. The consuming passions and pains of midlife are laid bare here, and a lot of things addressed or at the least alluded to that a lot of people simply don't talk about. I'm glad to leave it at that.
The stark sex scenes and sensuality are clunky and honest as well. I enjoyed this woman's romantic foibles far more than, say, the joyless, preachy Sex & the City reboot that's been foisted upon us as TV viewers. This book is a lot more fun and joyful, too.
There are some excellent passages, sentences and turns of phrase throughout. I love how Miranda July writes and will read basically anything she delivers. I wanted to know the protagonist, and I wanted to stay in the motel suite that she sunk thousands of dollars into as well. Someone please re-create that, stat. I'm ready to check in.
The stark sex scenes and sensuality are clunky and honest as well. I enjoyed this woman's romantic foibles far more than, say, the joyless, preachy Sex & the City reboot that's been foisted upon us as TV viewers. This book is a lot more fun and joyful, too.
There are some excellent passages, sentences and turns of phrase throughout. I love how Miranda July writes and will read basically anything she delivers. I wanted to know the protagonist, and I wanted to stay in the motel suite that she sunk thousands of dollars into as well. Someone please re-create that, stat. I'm ready to check in.
Fascinating stuff about breathing, of course, but also about the ways that the human face and head have evolved over decades and centuries. Topics such as sleep, apnea, etc., are also addressed, as a book like this basically has to do. This was a bit of an acquired taste (listen) early, and then it really took off for me.
I've caught myself holding my breath absentmindedly or unconsciously a lot in the past few years (since the pandemic proper, probably), and this listen (to the author himself) helped me reset that in a meaningful way. Or at least I hope. I hope it sticks.
The journalist, Nestor, does a good job narrating his own stuff here, and he's dry and witty at times, also profane in what we'll call all the right places. The breathing techniques taught by one of his interview subjects, one of the people he practically profiles as well here, are an added bonus in the audiobook version.
I've caught myself holding my breath absentmindedly or unconsciously a lot in the past few years (since the pandemic proper, probably), and this listen (to the author himself) helped me reset that in a meaningful way. Or at least I hope. I hope it sticks.
The journalist, Nestor, does a good job narrating his own stuff here, and he's dry and witty at times, also profane in what we'll call all the right places. The breathing techniques taught by one of his interview subjects, one of the people he practically profiles as well here, are an added bonus in the audiobook version.
Hadn't read an item of historical fiction quite like this before, a gay love story set against World War II. Sobering stuff, and sensual at times, yes. Sometimes both in the same chapter or paragraph, in the same breath. What a tragedy, war itself. So much damage and meaningless death. What a set of individual and collective tragedies.
The body count is high here, and the passion believable. I appreciated the juxtaposition and the friction of these things set against and thrown into each other. What a pair, Henry Gaunt and Sidney Ellwood. I wish they were real, and they probably were.
The body count is high here, and the passion believable. I appreciated the juxtaposition and the friction of these things set against and thrown into each other. What a pair, Henry Gaunt and Sidney Ellwood. I wish they were real, and they probably were.
Fun if rather predictable soundtrack of crowd-pleasing mixtape type songs. Some good thoughts and dialogue, quite true to life as millennials-in-waiting in the 1990s and 2000s. (I cannot stand “aughts” as a word.) I came and went with this novel — like a karma chameleon maybe – and it was pleasing to return to while feeling unhurried and fussy only in the way that our coming-of-age relationships were. I did want to upbraid a couple characters at times. You’ll have that.
Fantastic portraits, great energy and gumption and art. Even more of the photographer’s process might’ve gone far, tho this is a crowd-pleased of a coffeetable time. A lot of emphasis on John Mulaney, Tina Fey and similar SNL alums. Could’ve done without the features of Louis C.K. And Dave Chappelle, given the damage they’ve done. Overall a whimsical wham-bam read/lookbook.
Some lovely passages, and a lot of pop-cultural references and existential and relational themes. Vibe-y photos complement a number of these pieces, and I took on a new appreciation for the writer’s songs by way of reading them as lyric sheets or poems. Arlo Parks continues to be an intriguing, thoughtful voice in British, Black and queer art.
Taron Egerton's performance in Rocketman was deliriously good, and after Sir Elton delivers the introduction to this book, Egerton takes it from there, capably and gamely. There are a lot of great scenes and rejoinders (between and toward George Michael, Freddie Mercury, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Leon Russell, Rod Stewart and others), with the gossip you'd expect from such a queen as Lady Elton. I lapped up those passages, then was jolted by him having an affair in Atlanta with a John Scott (far too close to home, that) and enjoyed his behind-the-curtain stories about working with U.S. and world leaders on not-for-profit and societal goals.
My favorite sections were often the ones about his music-making with Russell and others, and his ridiculous experiences with Mercury and/or Jackson and/or Stewart. Some of the toughest to listen to were those involving his mother and family. Poor little Reggie thankfully rose above all that.
Sometimes Elton can be self-involved to the point of -aggrandizing. This comes as no shock, though it can be grating at times, tho blunted deftly as well by Egerton's vocal performance. I did this one entirely by audio, the way to go given the topics and the navel-gazing quotient.
Elton's survive-to-thrive experience with his substance use disorder(s), losing and finding loves, familial traumas, and navigating being gay/queer in entertainment (not the same in the 2020s as it was when he started) is truly captivating and to be heralded. He deserves his flowers, and yes, deserves to look – and loiter – in the mirror as he so likes.
My favorite sections were often the ones about his music-making with Russell and others, and his ridiculous experiences with Mercury and/or Jackson and/or Stewart. Some of the toughest to listen to were those involving his mother and family. Poor little Reggie thankfully rose above all that.
Sometimes Elton can be self-involved to the point of -aggrandizing. This comes as no shock, though it can be grating at times, tho blunted deftly as well by Egerton's vocal performance. I did this one entirely by audio, the way to go given the topics and the navel-gazing quotient.
Elton's survive-to-thrive experience with his substance use disorder(s), losing and finding loves, familial traumas, and navigating being gay/queer in entertainment (not the same in the 2020s as it was when he started) is truly captivating and to be heralded. He deserves his flowers, and yes, deserves to look – and loiter – in the mirror as he so likes.
So many things to say here. I will want to revisit this text every few years 'til I'm released from this mortal coil. After Clint Smith's Above Ground, this was my 2nd straight poetry-via-audio experience. Hanif Abdurraqib imbues his reading with immediacy, gravity and grace. I was left nearly dumbfounded by internal and closing lines in a few of these poems. I went back and replayed entire poems or portions of them. Sometimes I read along in my book while listening to him deliver the phrasings.
Reading this book felt like a spiritual experience, even as it was one in which I learned the life of another person, another background, another set of human foibles and triumphs.
Reading this book felt like a spiritual experience, even as it was one in which I learned the life of another person, another background, another set of human foibles and triumphs.