Citizenship | Literature
Select novels, short stories, and nonfiction on contemporary life.
What began as a bold experiment in grassroots service produced future ambassadors to help guide U.S. diplomacy through seven decades of global upheaval.
Read, Listen, Watch
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Amazon asked me if my novel, Two Pumps for the Body Man, met my expectations. “Well, the author’s no Graham Greene,” I say. “Please send me some of that.” Why should I (or anyone) read a story about a foot-fetishist diplomat doing time in Saudi Arabia when I (or anyone) could be reading about a vacuum cleaner salesman making bank in Cuba? But then…
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Ever since we moved in three years ago, visitors to our home have announced their arrival with a sick-sounding doorbell. Ding–Dunk, it sadly played. My reaction mirrored this dreary tune. Oh dear, who’s come to see us now? When the button finally gave way—a crack became a hole became an entirely broken piece of plastic more likely to…
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I never thought I’d say this: Sarah Palin is right. “What would you do, if elected president, about Aleppo,” can only be described as Gotcha Journalism. The question is particularly egregious in a conversation like the one between Gary Johnson and Mike Barnicle on MSNBC. The two were talking about domestic politics, the role of…
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Just like Preston Lang to put out his next neo-noir surprise without telling anyone. Two months later: Surprise! Dark, humorous matter available. Review coming soon. Everyone knows that cigarettes will kill you. Mark works the overnight in a grimy deli in the Bronx, selling gray market smokes and bad meat. His hotheaded manager Janet pushes him…
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I was driving the boys to a wishing well Sunday morning when good fortune came my way: NPR’s Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me was airing Not My Job. Talented people were supposed to do something without drawing on their talent. The talent in this case was Bill Oakley, who turned a Foreign Service exam cop…
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These independent writers are Making Books Great Again: screamingskullpress.com roguepress.net joylesshousepublishing.com paperandinkzine.co.uk vidlit.com Who else do you support by reading, reviewing, and sharing?
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How do you celebrate six years of Mohan? A small party with big guests, of course! Yes, all the invitees came to make dream jars in our former home, the BFG’s cave. And while they ate snozzcumber sandwiches and guzzled delicious frobscottle sodas and chomped on fleshlumps of watermelon, the evil giants ran off with the dream jars and deposited…
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To my colleagues in the foreign affairs community, known and unknown, I regret that the artwork of my novel about your service has misrepresented the truth. “BOO-ring,” LousyBookCoversDotCom hooted. “Showing you just how dramatic diplomacy can be.” What an insult my cover must seem to those of us who serve our country. What an insult to those who’ve worked in…
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Congrats to fellow Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Chris Orlet (Poland, 1992-94), who’s debut novel In the Pines came out this month from New Pulp Press. New Pulp is home to many other fine noir and crime writers like Mark Richardson (see my review of Hunt for the Troll–2015). NPP released my neo-noir satire, Two Pumps for the Body Man, this…
Ben East Books 