Inua Ellams wrote a poem entitled “Portrait of Prometheus as a Basketball Player” in which he imagined “the fire stolen from the gods to be shaped as a basketball, and Prometheus dunking light into the world.” [Note: Ctrl + F for “Portrait of Prometheus” at this link to read the poem.] Over at Magma, Ellams discusses “the process of composing a poem, as a coach might stitch a [basketball] team together.” Perhaps all of this explains Patricia Lockwood’s interest in Shaquille O’Neal?
Basketball, Poetry, and the Union of the Two
Read Yourself Saintly
Though the world may never know whether reading the greats makes you a better person, according to a recent study, those who take an active interest in the arts are more likely to be altruistic.
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Writing Back to van Gogh
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God Save the Queen
This one won't do much to lift the Sunday spirits, but it's an important read nonetheless. Here's Ed Miliband's thoughtful essay at the London Review of Books on the growing inequality problem in Britain, which should look very familiar to those of us stateside. Here are a couple of less depressing Britain-related links to bring you back around.
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Beckett’s Bones
80 years ago Samuel Beckett's publisher rejected his short story "Echo's Bones" because it gave him the "jim-jams." The 13,500-word piece on the afterlife was intended for More Pricks Than Kicks until his editor Charles Prentice claimed, "People will shudder and be puzzled and confused; and they won't be keen on analysing the shudder." Fortunately, it will finally be published by Faber and Faber on April 17.
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You Mother
Mother's Day is just around the corner, and there's no better way to prepare yourself than by taking a look at this list of ten fictional mothers who will have you thanking God for yours. From Emma Bovary of Flaubert's Madame Bovary to Mrs. Lisbon of The Virgin Suicides, these mothers will remind you that it could always be worse.
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NPR Reviews the New Franzen
Alan Cheuse's review of Jonathan Franzen's much-anticipated new novel, Freedom, appeared on All Things Considered yesterday...and begs the question of what kind of compassion we look for in novels.
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Clancy Martin, Sans Pants
How to Sell author Clancy Martin, drawing on his previous career as a jeweler, kicks off a three-parter at the Paris Review blog about how a potential jewelry deal took him to New Orleans and he ended up out on the street, wearing a bath towel and a blazer.
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