|
The Siege of Gresham, Ray Murphy
(AK Press; 134 pp; $10)
All over America, urban sprawl continues to spread. Apparently, the problem is particularly glaring in the Pacific Northwest, and out of this turmoil spins The Siege of Gresham, Ray Murphy’s caustic little novel about a group of insomniac Portland drunks who have had enough. The target of their aggressions is the new housing development of Gresham, which threatens not only their neighborhood but their way of life. Sex and violence never looked so necessary. |
 |
X-Texts, Derek Pell
(Autonomedia; 158pp; $8.95)
The best metanovelist/parodist no one’s ever heard of, the “most wickedly funny writer in America” (according to Larry McCaffery), Derek Pell twists, mangles, inverts and melts some of the most well-known and beloved stories in world literature, as only he can. Included herein are “Madame Bovary’s Training Bra” and “Naked Lunch at Tiffany’s”, among many, many other wicked and masterful offerings. Mad? Hilarious? Hilariously mad? You bet. |
|
Making Stuff and Doing Things, Kyle Bravo, ed.
(Microcosm; 240 pp.)
A lot of books tend to promise more than they can deliver (to say nothing of other aspects of life.) This book, though, with its subtitle, “A Collection of DIY Guides to Doing Just About Anything”, really will teach you to do just about anything, from making wine to treating lice to fixing your toilet. Get this book. Learn things. Special VOX POP exclusive price of $8.99 (that’s $3 off the list price!)
|
|
Dime’s Worth of Difference, Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St. Clair, eds.
(CounterPunch, 277 pp; $15.95)
It’s been said too many times to count that, more and more, the two major political parties in America are halves of the same coin. This collection of essays lays out, graphically, exactly to what extent that’s become the case. Even if you’ve long suspected that the Democrats get their money from the same sources as the Republicans- and you’ve wondered what deals have been cut- this book may rattle you. There’s work to be done. Read this, and let’s get to it. |
|
Collective Intelligence, Mark Tovey, ed.
(EIN; 612 pp; $27.95)
Whatever you may think of globalization, it’s here to stay, and to grow, and it will likely grow infinitely. This, however, might not be such a terrible thing, on the whole, if we remember that the exchange of information can benefit us all if we know how to relate to one another. The essays in this brilliant and monumental book serve to remind us that globalization does not have to merely mean corporate mergers and outsourcing. It can, if we let it, bring us together for the greater, planetary good. |
|
Beyond Bullets, Jules Boykoff
(AK Press; 460 pp; $21.95)
Ever wonder what happened to serious, widespread political opposition in America? That’s pretty easy, actually; the government happened. It took decades, but most of the loopholes have finally closed, and dissent these days is viewed as, at best, un-American, and at worst a prosecutable offense. Jules Boykoff lays out, graphically, how it happened, and offers a wealth of strategies and important information for both on-the-ground activists and armchair supporters. They’ve made it difficult, but Boykoff shows us that it’s not impossible.
|