There is a bargain bookstore close to my house, and that is indeed a good thing. I had some time to kill yesterday and found myself perusing its shelves. On my way to the counter with a David Sedaris book, half hidden behind a sign was a book of poems by Alice Walker. Her first in 10 years. She told her friends she "would probably not be writing anything more." When they asked what she would do, she replied, "I would like to become a wandering inspiration." Alice and her daughter were … [Read more...]

Take a load off fanny. With my heaviness of late, I thought it high time to elect a heroine. Naomi Klein is my heroine. From an interview in Alternet: Best known for her brilliant analysis of corporate marketing in No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies a book once described as "the Das Kapital of the anti-corporate movement", Naomi Klein has long been a voice for moral accountability in the media. Klein talks about Bush, the Iraq war and the need for progressives to "answer the … [Read more...]