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HENRY MILLER AND JAMES LAUGHLIN

SELECTED LETTERS

The fifth in the series of correspondence between avant-garde New Directions publisher Laughlin and his authors presents a slightly less intimate relationship (and less interesting Miller) but serves to chronicle one facet of Miller's anarchic career. In 1935, when he was still an undergraduate at Harvard and prepared to publish ultramodern writers rather than go into his Pittsburgh family's steel business, Laughlin wrote to the middle-aged author of the banned Tropic of Cancer. The ensuing 44-year correspondence (including others at New Directions, such as the later editor-in-chief Robert MacGregor), brings out unusual personal qualities on both sides. Miller is both comparatively restrained and brief, even in his enthusing suggestion of publishing Siddhartha (which became a New Directions bestseller in the '60s) and his laconic account of his parents' deaths. He also shows the familiar authorial discontent with distribution, sales, promotion, and royalties. The parsimonious Laughlin proves generous in the early years, giving frequent loans and advances, and finally settling on a monthly semisalary for the financially maladroit Miller in lieu of standard royalty payments. Loyally keeping Miller in print, New Directions emerges as cautious but canny, notably during the ban on his notorious books, when they concocted a Henry Miller Reader of permissible material from his works. Editor Wickes (English/Univ. of Oregon; ed., Miller's Letters to Emil, 1989, not reviewed, etc.) supplies a functional introduction, but his notes fluctuate between incomplete and obvious. Although Miller's earlier correspondence was more vital and lusty and his dealing with Grove more controversial, his slightly prickly but perdurable relationship with New Directions spanned both a radical career and a transformation in publishing and literature, as evidenced here.

Pub Date: Dec. 1, 1995

ISBN: 0-393-03864-5

Page Count: 304

Publisher: Norton

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1995

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DYLAN GOES ELECTRIC!

NEWPORT, SEEGER, DYLAN, AND THE NIGHT THAT SPLIT THE SIXTIES

An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...

Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.

The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.

An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.

Pub Date: July 25, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015

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NUTCRACKER

This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

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