[contextly_auto_sidebar id="65McoqrzvnW78eClGabJ9zi1OijdJLHZ"] WRITERS and artists are notoriously difficult to corral; it's both built into the job description and something that keeps the creative class from asserting itself. But lately a number of scribes have united in an effort to resist the bullying of the online bookseller. The New York Times reports : Now, hundreds … [Read more...]
Looking Ahead With Astra Taylor, Tallest Tree; and Rushdie
[contextly_auto_sidebar id="kNYZhxkhTXTFf6ORXY8ykY6cNtaDGWj8"] THE other day I spoke to Astra Taylor, a documentary filmmaker who was involved in the Occupy movement, about her new book The People's Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age. I'll be writing about her more fully shortly, but for now I'll just say this is one of the best books on the impact of digital technology … [Read more...]
Salman Rushdie in Los Angeles
ONE of my best experiences as a books/authors reporter was spending most of a day wandering around LA with Salman Rushdie. We discussed his longtime interest in film while strolling through his old neighborhood in West Hollywood, talked about the Beatles and the English '60s over iced coffees at the Kings Road Cafe, and got into his years in hiding while having lunch nearby.Rushdie is in town … [Read more...]
Salman Rushdie vs. Los Angeles
WHEN i agreed to hang out with novelist salman rushdie in and around hollywood for a few hours, i would not have been surprised to find myself embroiled in a discussion about george harrison's facility for the sitar, or to be shown the very drugstore where an acid-tripping aldous huxley encountered "the doors of perception." but i did not expect to get into a hilarious story about "starsky and … [Read more...]