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Matthew
Ring of Bone by Lew Welch
“I’m really interested in Lew Welch’s influence by the Asian hermit poets. He always struggled with depression and in the 70s he lived alone in a shack in the woods. A suicide note was found on his car and his body was never recovered. His work has an interesting balance of country and city life, he uses the contrast to comment on human corruption.”
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Shappy
The Journals of Spalding Grey edited by Nell Casey
“This book provides a really great insight into the mind of Spalding Grey in the 1980s. He lived with Willem DaFoe at the time, who he describes as extremely sensitive. Spalding made him cry on more than one occasion. It gets difficult to decipher journal from monologue because Spalding’s work is so confessional. It’s a great look into experimental theater at that time. “
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Madeline
The Tools by Phil Stutz & Barry Michels
“I’m only through 3 of the 5 Tools, but I was surprised to find this book to be a mix of spiritual and psychiatric self-improvement. Meant not to compete but complement traditional psychiatric/psychological therapy, the Tools offer people concrete methods of dealing with their problems here and now. Although still a bit skeptical, I have found the three Tools I’ve used to have a noticeable calming effect in certain situations. This is definitely a book worth looking at.”
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Merrilee
The Man Who Saved the Union by H.W. Brands
” H.W. Brands new book is really excellent. I am a civil war geek- there is no such thing as “too civil war.” I just got to the part where Grant is elected president. I like the idea that Grant knew who he was and what he could do and did it. He was always faithful to his commander in chief. He didn’t agree with Johnson but still stayed faithful. This is the first H.W. Brands book I’ve read, I am going to go back and read them all. It’s really great.”
The Man Who Saved the Union will be released in September 2012.
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Joe
The Great Divide by Peter Watson
“Watson compares the development and reasons for that development in the “Old World” and the “New.” He questions what makes them so different and what made western civilization so successful. It’s really interesting. People coming to the Americas along lines of latitude come from similar climates, they acclimate much easier. This book cites things like the post ice age flooding as a major influence in the formation of mythologies and religions, and discusses the Toba eruption’s role in resetting our population.”
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