Nathaniel Philbrick answers the question Why Read Moby-Dick: “the level of the language is like no other,” but also “it’s as close to being our American Bible as we have.”
Why Read Moby Dick?
From the Newsstand
This week has brought new issues of The Quarterly Conversation (including considerations of Herta Müller, Per Petterson, and Jonathan Swift); Lapham’s Quarterly (The Arts & Letters issue, featuring Salman Rushdie); and Triple Canopy (“Hue and Cry”)
On Doormats and Shoes
At Page-Turner, our own Mark O’Connell notes “a thrilling obscenity” in the works of Gonçalo M. Tavares, a Portuguese writer whose recent novel, Jerusalem, depicts a character with schizophrenia. A lesser-known symptom of the illness, apparently, is a tendency to treat inanimate objects like conscious (and social) beings. (We wrote about Tavares back in March.)
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The Most Read Novel on Amazon
The Most Read Novel on Amazon is the Handmaid’s Tale! Makes a lot of sense. Read how Amazon figured this out and the runner ups here.
Writerly Personalities
Have you ever taken a Myers-Briggs personality test? (I fall somewhere between ISTJ and ISFJ.) Book Riot reveals the Myers-Briggs types of 101 famous authors.
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New Coen Brothers Trailer
Recommended Viewing: The trailer for Joel and Ethan Coen’s forthcoming film, Inside Llewyn Davis.
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Go Forth and Delight
Any time two writers like George Saunders and Ben Marcus get together for an interview, it’s worth a read. Here are a couple of Millions essays on Saunders and Marcus, respectively.
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Muses and Bodies and Art and Grief
Recommended listening: David Naimon talks with Lidia Yuknavitch about “Muses, Bodies and Biography.” Pair with Yuknavitch’s Millions essay on art and grieving.
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