His books are long out of print, basically forgotten. And when they were current, his last name always overshadowed his first. But contemporary readers fortunate enough to spend time with Shiva Naipaul, the late younger brother of Nobel Prize-winner V.S. Naipaul, will find the former a true original, perhaps the great lost author of theContinue reading ““Every day, I have to redefine myself” Remembering Shiva Naipaul 1945-85″
Author Archives: markwrite57
Book Review: “Love, Not Just A Habit”
Originally Published In The Los Angeles Times Book Review February 24, 2008 Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff Tweak: Growing Up On Methamphetamines by Nic Sheff WHEN 18-year-old Nic Sheff fell in love for the first time, it hit him hard, the way it hammers many sensitive adolescents, aContinue reading “Book Review: “Love, Not Just A Habit””
A Sort of Mentor
Jeff Reidel was the strangest person I’ve met in NYC, then or now, and almost 40 years later I finally realize how much he taught me Moving into 78 Washington Place, during early spring 1981, didn’t take long. My possessions consisted of two suitcases, briefcase, clock radio, electric typewriter. Apartment 3C came furnished. The metalContinue reading “A Sort of Mentor”
When AM Radio Wouldn’t Shut Up
A dusty paperback novel conjures up the heyday of late night talk jocks My stack of library books depleted, I recently combed our overflowing shelves for something to read during these long housebound days. A dusty paperback from 1972 caught my eye: The Dick Gibson Show by Stanley Elkin. The author was a well-regarded dispenser of serious literary fictionContinue reading “When AM Radio Wouldn’t Shut Up”
Book Review
Bottlemania: How Water Went On Sale And Why We Bought It (Bloomsbury 2008) by Elizabeth Royte. (Originally appeared in The Los Angeles Times Book Review June 1, 2008) In 2006, Americans consumed, per capita, more than 25 gallons of bottled water — twice as much as in 1997 and almost five times as much asContinue reading “Book Review”
Truth or Dare
My first job search in New York City resulted in a surprise lie detector test Desperation inspired me to answer a generic calling-all-college-grads type of ad, for a “junior management position in retail.” Since I’d worked for two years at a record store while obtaining my useless social science degree, for the first time inContinue reading “Truth or Dare”
Mark Coleman 