Chinese citizens are increasingly adopting English nicknames. But, why would anyone choose a name like “Rainman” or “Mud”? The new book In China, My Name is… explores this puzzling phenomena. (Awesome t-shirt, Ben)
In China, my name is Mud.
We Need to Lie Down
“But migraines! Everyone relishes a migraine. They have a literal aura! Migraines foster the sort of pure narcissism that only intense, essentially benign pain can. We sufferers (that’s how it’s described, “migraine sufferer”) feel it is meet and right that the migraine should be dramatized in films like Pi or White Heat; this strengthens the perception that migraines are the hallmark of geniuses, or at least psychopaths. Joan Didion writes about them; of course she does.” Sadie Stein on the allure of the headache to end all headaches.
The Economy of Goodwill
Recommended Reading: Against crowdfunding websites that marketize goodwill.
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Don’t Assume
“I asked myself – why don’t I state the race of my characters? And am I doing something wrong by not explicitly including a diverse cast of characters? Could I be doing something better? The short answer is yes.” An argument in favor of race bent fanfiction and resisting assumedly white characters from The Missouri Review blog.
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New Quarterly Conversation
In the new Quarterly Conversation, among other pieces, Jordan Soyka endeavors to answer the question, “How do we decide who owns the right to write about Hurricane Katrina?”
Struggle on Stage
Karl Ove Knausgaard’s six-volume My Struggle will be adapted to the stage — all 3,600 pages in under 150 minutes. Pair with Jonathan Callahan’s Millions review.