In Praise of Authors Who Aren’t Afraid to Geek Out - AND - Photos That Prove Cats Take Better Bookshelfies Than Humans

Jonathan Lethem’s ‘Dissident Gardens’: In Praise of Authors Who Aren’t Afraid to Geek Out

By Jason Diamond on Sep 5, 2013   Flavorwire 

When I tell people that Jonathan Lethem’s latest novel, Dissident Gardens, is the author’s most accessible work, I tend to walk away from the conversation thinking I did the person I was talking to, and the author, a disservice. 
The book isn’t less engaging or a step down from his previous works; what I mean is that Dissident Gardens is Lethem’s easiest novel to follow, and far less genre- and culture reference-dependent than past novels like Chronic City (science fiction) and Motherless Brooklyn (postmodern detective novel). … Read More

24 Photos That Prove Cats Take Better Bookshelfies Than Humans

By Michelle Dean on Sep 5, 2013 

Isaac Fitzgerald, a McSweeneys’ publicist and former managing editor of the Rumpus, and Max Fenton, an editor at The Believer, recently started a craze for what they call bookshelfies. They are, to put it briefly, selfies taken in front of bookshelves. Now, though Isaac is wonderful and lovely, I have to say I don’t find looking at people’s selfies particularly compelling unless I (a) know them personally or (b) they are famous and I can marvel at how strange it is that people who are constantly being photographed want yet more images of themselves. No offense, world! You are all beautiful. … Read More