Politics | Raging Biblio-holism

Young Radicals: In the War for American Ideals

July 17, 2017 by Drew

The Short Version: In the 1910s, a constellation of young idealists thought that the world was headed towards the utopia they were envisioning. When World War One breaks out, they – and their still-young nation – must grapple with the cold realities of a world that might not be ready for them. The Review: What happens when the world around you turns out to be quite other than what you’d thought it was going to be? When your ideals are not […]

Categories: History, Non-Fiction • Tags: Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, History, Jeremy McCarter, Non-Fiction, Politics, review, Socialism, US History, World War One, YOung Radicals

The Curfew

September 23, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: Molly’s mother was disappeared by the government when she was younger. Now, she and her father William (a violinist-turned-epitaphorist) live a quiet life in an increasingly violent and dangerous city where no one goes out after dark and people die in the streets. But when William goes out on an errand late one night and does not return, she and her neighbor create a puppet show in the hopes of explaining and perhaps saving their story. The […]

Categories: Fiction, Literature • Tags: Agitprop, Book, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Dystopia, Family, Fiction, Jesse Ball, Literature, Music, Politics, review, Reviews, The Curfew, Totalitarianism

Underground Airlines

June 22, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: Victor is a middle-aged black man working for the U.S. Marshals as a sort of bounty hunter – a bounty hunter of escaped slaves, in a present day where the Civil War never happened. When his latest case begins to spin out of his control, he finds himself in a position to potentially do something great… maybe even great enough to change the world… The Review: Imagine, if you will, a world where Abraham Lincoln was shot […]

Categories: Fiction, Literature, Mystery • Tags: Advance Review, Alternate History, Ben H. Winters, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literature, Mystery, Politics, Race, Reviews, Slavery, Underground Airlines

Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’72

May 6, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, doctor of journalism, heads out on the campaign trail, following the Democratic Primary in 1972 on behalf of Rolling Stone. But 1972 was when it all changed – and as McGovern unexpectedly rockets towards the nomination, Thompson buckles down for some full Gonzo journalism… The Review: One of the first pieces of political journalism I can remember reading of my own volition was “Fear and Loathing, Campaign 2004” – Hunter’s last piece for Rolling […]

Categories: Non-Fiction • Tags: American Political System, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Democratic Primary, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72, Hunter S. Thompson, Journalism, McGovern, Nixon, Non-Fiction, Politics, Primaries, Reviews

The Witch Who Came in From the Cold, Season One

May 4, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: In 1970, the Cold War is in full swing and Prague, on the edge of the Iron Curtain, is one of the hotspots of covert action. But Gabe Pritchard, CIA officer, discovers a whole other secret war – one between sorcerers, of Ice and Flame – and finds that allegiances aren’t so clear when magic gets involved. With a major op on the horizon, he and his KGB counterpart Tanya Morozova must find a way to work […]

Categories: Fantasy, Fiction, Spy • Tags: audiobook, Cassandra Rose Clarke, Cold War, Fantasy, Fiction, Ian Tregillis, Lindsay Smith, Magic, Max Gladstone, Michael Swanwick, Politics, Prague, Russia, Serial Novel, serialbox, serialbox publishing, the witch who came in from the cold, USSR

The Dispossessed

February 8, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: Ever since the planet was founded over 150 years ago, Anarres has been kept apart from its sister planet (or more accurately moon) Urras. This all changes when a gifted physicist named Shevek travels to Urras with the promise of faster-than-light technology – but can his anarchist-utopian beliefs survive on the staunchly capitalist planet? And were they even true beliefs to begin with? The Review: In the last few years, there’s been a whole lot of hubbub in […]

Categories: Fiction, Sci-Fi • Tags: Book Review, Book Reviews, BookClub, Books, Fiction, Olive Edition, Olive Editions, Philosophy, Politics, review, Reviews, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, The Dispossessed, Ursula K. Le Guin

Square Wave

February 1, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: Sometime in the future, in a city called Halsley in an America not quite dystopic but certainly worse off than we are now, several lives intertwine: a writer interested in 17th-century Sri Lanka, a musician exploring microtones, the son of an Indian scientist researching weather modification, and more all come together not quite in harmony but in a sort of harmonic dissidence as the presidential elections loom… The Review: I’ll admit that for quite a long time with this […]

Categories: Fiction, Literature • Tags: Advance Review, America, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Dystopia, Fiction, History, Ideas, Literature, Mark de Silva, Music, Philosophy, Politics, Reviews, Science, Science Fiction, Square Wave, Two Dollar Radio

Iron Council

January 22, 2016 by Drew

The Short Version: A railroad sets out from New Crobuzon and goes rogue, setting off across the continent in pursuit of an ideal of freedom. Time passes and the train turns to myth – but with war tearing apart New Crobuzon from within and without, a small band of adventurers sets out to bring the train home. The Iron Council is needed… The Review: I don’t know why I’m so ambivalent about this book. On the surface, it should deliver […]

Categories: Fantasy, Fiction • Tags: Bas-Lag, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Cartography, China Miéville, Fantasy, Fiction, Iron Council, New Crobuzon, Politics, Reviews, Revolution, Trains, Travel, Weird, Weird Fiction

US(a.)

December 14, 2015 by Drew

The Short Version: A new collection of poetry, essays, and script excerpts from one of our most fiery and passionate artists on the general theme of America, both now and then. The Review: I discovered Saul Williams in 2007 when Trent Reznor helped produce his phenomenal The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust and they gave it away as a pay-what-you-can sort of deal – this was immediately post-In Rainbows – and I had my mind blown the first time the needle dropped. This is […]

Categories: Non-Fiction, Poetry • Tags: America, Book Review, Book Reviews, Books, Current Events, Essays, Fiction, France, Memoir, Miles Davis, Non-Fiction, Paris, Poetry, Politics, Racism, Reviews, Saul Williams, Scripts, US (a.), USA

Raging Biblio-holism

The overwhelming urge to collect, consume, and consider books

Tag: Politics