Citizenship | Literature
Select novels, short stories, and nonfiction on contemporary life.
Ben East’s nonfiction debut recounts how JFK’s bold experiment shaped diplomatic careers and influenced modern American diplomacy.
Read, Listen, Watch
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Migrating to my third generation Mac. That’s a circa 2004 15″ Powerbook G4 on the right, currently in use for a novel in development (Big Fish, Little Fish, for my son’s 8th birthday). I had to ramp it up tonight because the more modern machines are talking to each other, or at least trying to.…
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The NRA and its lackeys are fond of telling us the only thing that can stop a ‘bad guy with a gun’ is a ‘good guy with a gun.’ I have no problem with responsible gun ownership. But I reject the assumption that ‘…with a gun’ is the natural order of things. The above canard…
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Prayers, check. Silence, check. Guns, Amen.
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Which books are you boycotting? So many to choose from… Stick it to them, I say!
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The crazies at NRA can’t, but I can do better than a black and yellow duffel bag. Club Patchworks—free paperback with every subscription!
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Think of all the time and effort that goes into writing a novel. Then think about this reaction when you get to the end: “So what?” Or this: “What next?” So what? What next? That can be what it feels like to finish writing a novel. I guess there was the one time I finished…
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DC-area writers, consider stopping by the American Foreign Service Association for this year’s book market featuring a talk on writing and publishing from 25-year veteran literary agent and editor Deborah Grosvenor. Two dozen Foreign Service-affiliated authors will also be there with their latest work. Find out what publishers are looking for when it comes to writing…
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If you aren’t following The Nib you’re missing out! Yesterday they featured a slate by cartoonist Jeremy Nguyen featuring new defenses against flying bullets. Because, you know, our elected officials certainly won’t help. Check it out.
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A short block from Maryland’s historic State House, down a white brick street narrow with specialty shops, The Annapolis Bookstore is exactly what a bookstore ought to be: jammed with literature, old and new, on shelves that climb from creaking wood floor to high plaster ceiling. Close with the antiquated must of well-turned pages, yet…
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I watched in suspended horror and fascination as the single-engine Socata bobbed and wobbled just 50 yards from our windshield on the way out to Annapolis tonight. We had a good 15 seconds to watch it fly just above oncoming traffic to our left — put it at 40 or 50 feet over those cars…
Ben East Books 