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Category Archives: Whatever
A VALENTINE’S DAY READING . . . ALMOST
Come one! Come all! I hereby invite anyone within the sound of my voice or the range of my words to hear me read pieces selected just for Valentine’s Day! Well, the reading won’t take place exactly on Valentine’s day … Continue reading
Posted in More About Jim, On Writing, Readings & Events, Whatever
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THE COMFORT OF OTHER VOICES, EVEN FROM THE MOON
Well, I haven’t blogged in months! My silence was due to a touch of melancholy, no doubt, and what drove that melancholy was most certainly a decision to reverse itself by the small press which had contracted to bring out … Continue reading
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DELIGHTFUL ENCOUNTERS FROM AN UNEXPECTED SOURCE
I have a new hero. Heroine, I suppose. Her name is Nina Berberova. An artist friend of mine knows an architect who studied at Princeton. Over lunch together — the three of us — he learned both that I’m a … Continue reading
Posted in On Writing, Publications, Whatever
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A NON-FICTION BOMBSHELL FROM THE PAST, ABOUT THE PAST
I don’t read much non-fiction these days, but I can enthusiastically recommend In Harm’s Way, by Doug Stanton. It’s the story of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in August, 1945. I sought it out as research, hoping to wrest … Continue reading
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THE “COLUMBIA RIOTS,” NICHOLAS BERDIAEV AND ME
I’m often late with birthdays, so it should shock no one that I’m tardy in acknowledging the fortieth anniversary of the 1968 “riots” at Columbia University. I have friends who played an active role back then, and who recently spoke … Continue reading
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CALVINO AND PASCAL: WHAT SCARES YOU CAN ALSO EXCITE
I came across a quote today by Italo Calvino that is so wonderfully illustrative of the problem writers often face in constructing a story, that I’d like to share it with you. It occurs in a lecture he prepared for … Continue reading
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RUMBLINGS AND MUMBLINGS ABOUT HISTORY
Here I am, up at 6:15 in the morning, thinking about history. Where’s the justice in that? Back in the days when I taught Russian History, I used a textbook written by Nicholas Riasanovsky, called simply A History of Russia. … Continue reading
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READING GREAT BOOKS LATE IN LIFE
I just finished reading The Great Gatsby. “So what?” you think, or “Don’t you mean, re-reading The Great Gatsby?” Thus I have felt gently chided by a few of my more literate friends. But, for sure, I was reading Gatsby … Continue reading
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WHAT’S PAST IS, AS THEY SAY, PROLOGUE
I have a picture of me, back then, astride my horse, Tony. Or no, it is not my horse, but a borrowed one, a horse I took care of, sheltered, rode and loved. But did not own. Come to think … Continue reading
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HOW TO WRITE A PLAY WHILE BITING ONE’S NAILS
My first novel, Wounded by History, is scheduled to come out next month. It’s been a long wait, and even though things seem to be going well at the moment, it’s still a nail-biter. It’s hard to describe my internal … Continue reading
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