Upon John Gregory Dunne’s death of a heart attack in December 2003 the many obituaries and eulogies for this famous man of letters stressed the deft touch Dunne brought as a writer to those subjects he knew well.
Books
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
‘I don’t know who I am yet’: Gabriel García Márquez’s ‘Living to Tell the Tale’
The front cover of ‘Living to Tell the Tale’ shows the author as a wide-eyed child of 2, while the back cover shows the Nobel laureate as a distinguished gentleman of 75.
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A Force to Reckon With
In this brief but compelling little book Joseph Kelly professor of religious studies at John Carroll University in Cleveland Ohio offers a thoughtful contemporary theodicy for young Christians Framed as a meditation on the events of Sept 11 2001 the book marshals Kelly rsquo s wide knowledge
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Boston Boy
The most startling fact about Edwin O’Connor’s life was its brevity The acclaimed author of such mid-century Irish and Catholic classics as ‘The Last Hurrah’ and ‘The Edge of Sadness’ seemed a fit and healthy man. Yet he died when he was just 49 in 1968.
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Doctor to the Poor
My take-home message from this review is similar to the line I wrote on my book reports in elementary school: I would recommend this book to all my friends. It is a rare experience for me to find a book that sets me on fire, stirs me up and makes me think critically about my […]
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Sweetness and Light
Ron Hansen’s new novel is a dollop of sweet cream, an entertainment, a sip of champagne, a screwball comedy, a romp, a bauble, a love letter to Nebraska.
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Paradise Lost
During an interview several years ago Edna O’Brien told me a story about an appearance of hers in the 1960’s on an Irish television program during which the host said to the studio audience: “Hands up all of you who think Edna O’Brien has shamed her country.”
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Mindful Monks
Robert King a retired philosophy and religion professor and academic dean, discovered only late in his academic career the contemplative dimension of Christianity
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A Hungry Philosopher
The novelist Iris Murdoch died only two years ago at the age of 79, but already a memoir, film and biography have appeared to preserve her memory for devoted fans and to introduce her to new audiences. In Iris Murdoch: A Life, Peter J. Conradi offers a wide-ranging look at the life of a writer and philosopher who had a remarkable “hunger for the spiritual in a post-theistic age.”
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Crusader for a better society
Maurice Isserman the William R Kenan Jr Professor of History at Hamilton College in Clinton N Y has a well-earned reputation as a leading historian of the American political left His specialty has led him to explore the life of the socialist activist Michael Harrington (1928-89).