With three permanent but aging legends on the same bill, the only potential drawback to this gig is the possibility that the headliners will give in to the temptation to go through the motions and bask in each other’s well-deserved glory. But even if they do, it will still be worth the dough. Many try, … Read more
For my money Rupert Thomson is one of the most adventurous and consistently dazzling writers working today. He’s also criminally underrated (and largely unknown) in the United States. His 1996 novel, The Insult, featured one of the great untrustworthy narrators in recent memory: a man, blinded by a bullet to the head, who suffers from … Read more
A sheepish admission: I’m often a little surprised when I come across a great story or writer from Minnesota. This seems to be a relatively common manifestation of Midwestern insecurity; it’s hard-wired in many of us to think that the worthiest art can only be a product of someplace else. But Nona Caspers deftly turns … Read more
With Burning Down the House (1997), a collection of essays on writing, Charles Baxter became a fixture, by proxy, in fiction workshops everywhere. In his new book, The Art of Subtext: Beyond Plot (Graywolf Press), Baxter goes on to explore the unwritten aspects of writing. He sets out to prove that, in fiction, “What is … Read more
Yeah, we know, that’s three plugs for Magers and Quinn events for August (and there’s another one to come), but what can we say? The competition is generally a bit tardy on their press releases, the Uptown behemoth just keeps getting bigger and better, and this month in particular the folks at M&Q have put … Read more
Disney’s long-hidden classic Song of the South hasn’t been seen in theaters (or on DVD) since its theatrical rerelease in 1986. If you’ll recall, this is the simple tale of a white boy who goes to visit his grandma’s plantation in the post-Civil War South while his folks consider splitting up. There, he is watched … Read more
What is it about Invasion of the Body Snatchers? Granted, this was one of the iconic B-movie masterpieces, a spine-tingling and all-too-real allegory of both ’50s conformity and the rise of Communism. But unlike other sci-fi films of the period, the remakes have boasted talent up the wazoo. The ’70s version brought acclaimed director Philip … Read more
An earthquake rattled Twin Cities radio this past month. It cracked open the notoriously unstable Clear Channel fault line and took down a legendary monolith, Mick Anselmo, previously thought to be impervious to corporate shock waves. Until his firing, Anselmo ran the seven stations Clear Channel owns here in the Twin Cities—Cities 97, KFAN, K102, … Read more
Never Google yourself. You might find something you don’t like, and it might bum you out. I’m saying this, of course, because that is exactly what I did, and exactly what happened. I wish I were a stronger person than I am, but I’ve been thinking about this random critique from this random guy ever … Read more
I first met Dennis Banks two years ago, at a gallery opening featuring the work of Dick Bancroft, a local photographer who specializes in chronicling the American Indian Movement (AIM) and father of the famous polar explorer, Ann Bancroft. We were at Ancient Traders Gallery, on Franklin, and Banks was dressed that night in feathers … Read more