I've been reading. Allow me to present some (very) short reviews of some of the things I've been reading. Fun!
The Vinyl Underground, issues 1 - 12
Twelve issues, I fear, were not enough for this series. Writer Si Spencer and penciller Simon Gane did a good job with Underground. But it was a little cramped. It's fun, and it's quick. There are three main mysteries, but the structure of the thing makes it seem as though Spencer got a little too wrapped up in mysteries one and two to really give mystery three (ostensibly, the one that ties it all together) the treatment it deserved. Pity.
THE GOOD: Fun and lighthearted without being air-headed. THE BAD: A bit kitchy in the first few issues, and, as mentioned earlier, a touch on the short side. THE UGLY: I'd go out and buy it in trade, but this one isn't headed for the hall of fame.
Rediscovering God in America
Oh Newt Gingrich! How is it possible that you're a professor of history! Seriously. How is that possible. This book is facile to the core. The writing is sharp and tight, but it requires a number of logical leaps for the argument to even be valid (as in, if the premises are true, then the conclusion is true, which says nothing about the actual truth-status of the premises).
THE GOOD: Um... did you know that Newt Gingrich was the Speaker of the House? THE BAD: Newt Gingrich thinks you should cut your hair, you goddamn hippies. Also, the argument is that God is the font from which American Government flows. THE UGLY: Newt Gingrich finalized his divorce agreements while his wife was in a hospital bed. Don't read this book unless you have to.
[ED NOTE: Hide your women! Lock up your booze! Newt Gingrich is coming to Oberlin. It's the 24th, I think. The Q & A should be fun. I wonder if they'll have to bring in extra security like they did for Malkin.]
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