A journey through the UK’s remaining independent bookshops as they survive the onslaught of the big online and offline chains.
Interesting interview with Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemna, on local food systems, organic produce and the fabricated cult of convenience from ready-made everything.
An interview with Sam Harris, author of The End of Faith. I read the book recently and, even with its flaws, it’s a stimulating read in this world where irrational behaviour seems to be on the increase.
Ah, that explains the school shootings we keep seeing.
The independent on the books many people own but have never read. Strangely enough, I’m busy reading Cloud Atlas which is in their top 5 and I can’t put it down it’s so captivating.
I really enjoyed Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, hopefully having Gus Van Sant behind the movie will avoid yet another hopeless book adaptation.
I really enjoyed Wolfe's The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, hopefully having Gus Van Sant behind the movie will avoid yet another hopeless book adaptation.
Wonderful summary of the inane Thomas Friedman. I could never get the hullaballoo surrounding that fellow.
The comments on the video for Haruomi Hosono's 1984 cassette track Watering a flower are lovely. It's a pleasant change from the usual youtube toxicity. They've even been compiled into a book. (via Joe Veix)
Great article on the Paris catacombs and the "cataphiles" that map and explore them. It's excerpted from a book which I'm definitely adding to my reading pile.
a Gibsonian apocalypse: the end of the world is already here; it’s just not very evenly distributed.
Brilliant interview with William Gibson.
The New York Times takes a peek at background celebrity bookshelves as they get interviewed from home.
In other words, in a process that even Dr. Barrett admits “defies common sense,” you’re almost always acting on the predictions that your brain is making about what’s going to happen next, not reacting to experience as it unfolds.
It turns out our brains predict more often than they react. I just ordered the book referenced in the article to dig deeper.
An interesting project that takes books from the public domain and cleans up formatting, typography and more. So if you're looking for some free classic reads for your eReader, it looks like a great source. I have my eye on a few.
Redu is a village in the south of Belgium that's famous for its many bookshops. As physical book sales die, the village is dying alongside them. Some locals are trying new things though.
One of the best ways to find good things to read is to look for the essays that were so good that they eventually became books.
An interesting list of essays that eventually became books, with links to both. I've read a few and, honestly, the essay is usually fine. Non-fiction books have a tendency to add filler in order to hit a minimum page count.
