New York Review Of Books

This Magazine item from New York Review of Books was reviewed on 4-Nov-2008.

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1) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. I have heard this magazine/periodical described as "the best magazine in the world" and I have to agree with this statement. In fact, this may sound ridiculous, but it is so good that I can´t even subscribe to it because I end of spending so much time reading it that I neglect my other work and duties. A sad comment on our increasingly hectic/modern lives (or at least mine).
I keep telling myself I will reward myself with a new subscription. I guess I need to do something to earn it:-)¤

2) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. I have little complaint with the content of the NYRB but beware subscribing to them. They are known for their incompetence in delivery, in failing to acknowledge receipt of payment, and in consistently putting wrong address labels on their issues. BE WARNED.¤

3) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. The New York Review of Books is somewhat of a mixed bag. If you have objections to pretentious pundits passing judgment on anything that comes their way, or are irritated by insipid intellectualia, there will be something in every issue to drive you crazy. But if you can get past that, you´ll find some high quality writing about some of the most important new ideas out there.

As far as I can tell, the NYRB does two things. Sometimes it gets a great new book and sends it out to someone who is deservedly prominent in the field and then you get a wonderful combination of a recapitulation of someone´s argument, a critical examination of this argument, and references to other related pieces. The other thing the NYRB does it get one of their usual suspects--freelance intellectuals, i.e., retired something-or-others, i.e., has beens--to write about whatever they want, whether they know much about it or not. So you will get preachy articles in foreign affairs written by someone who hasn´t been out of Sardi´s restaurant in Washington in 30 years, telling you what "the real scoop" is on country X. Except for those written by Gary Willis, these articles are usually sub-par, and those who read them aren´t well informed--they´re just regurgitating whatever is the received wisdom among the involuted circle of greying New York intellectuals that runs this paper. (The worst is reviews of biographies--watch out for the little footnote that goes something like this: "In the interests of complete honest disclosure, I must say that famous person, subject of this biography, always was chummy with your humble reviewer, and we once split a six pack of malt liquor while riding the rails across Wyoming." Oh please!)

But the reviews--and sometimes the debates--are usually stellar. I wonder why they don´t just switch to all reviews. Of course, I bet some of those big names wouldn´t be willing to write reviews--why, then they´d have to actually READ something they hadn´t written, and they might come across a new idea. And actually, I do understand that. It is a lot of work to do a thoughtful and balanced review. And while people will always faun all over some pseudo-reportage with plenty of name-dropping flashbacks (oh my! he just let slip that he once smoked a cigar with Franco!), reviewing isn´t always rewarded. I certainly know the hurt of spending a great deal of time on a serious review, and learning that "0 out of 5 people found this review helpful." Why bother? And it goes deeper--if you find something seriously problematic with some product, keep it to yourself! An honest review...or interference with interstate trade? Someone in the pocket of the company is likely to be the judge! [22]¤

4) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. This was the easiest and least expensive way to purchase a subscription to NY Review of Books. It made a great gift and the sub started arriving very quickly.¤

5) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. I love the New York Review. While I do not agree politically with many of the articles, that´s a small price to pay for the overwhelming number of pieces written, as an earlier reviewer said, by experts who really care about what they´re writing about. America needs to celebrate its public intellectuals and, if most of them don´t like Bush (another reviewer´s complaint), well, it´s tough to be open minded and smart, like most of the writers in the Review, and also be a Bush supporter. I mean, this is the Bush administration, which has shown about as much respect for the truth as a cat for a wounded sparrow. Which is obviously antithetical to the mission of (most of) the Review writers: to really try to figure stuff out.¤

6) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. The New York Review of Books has served as a forum for writers and thinkers to discuss not only current books but also the provocative and complex issues of American culture, society, economics, politics, and the arts.¤

7) Magazine Magazine New York Review Of Books by New York Review of Books. If all book reviews aspire to the condition of magazines, the New York Review would represent the best realization of this aspiration to date. It retains the character of a book review, published 20 times a year. But since its inception over 30 years ago, the reviews have been long, dense (recent years have brought the practice of footnotes), and learned. Significant fiction is pondered, along with bits of poetry, slices of science, and gobs of political science, history, economics, biography, art, and music. The reader of the New York Review easily feels relieved of the cultural burden of having to read a book once having completed the sufficient burden of having read a thorough review of it. Although the impeccably left-leaning editors would be loathe to agree, only major figures or discourses in the European intellectual tradition need apply to their pages for consideration. Hence, for example, although occasional "pieces" on certain worthy movies now appear, popular culture is not a serious concern. Lately, the Review has given over more of its pages (from 60 to 80 each issue) to journalistic reports--the latest political currents in China or Russia, the state of affairs in Kurdistan or at Camp X-Ray in Guantanamo Bay. Its core identity remains, however, that of a magazine unequaled for addressing intellectual "issues"--Darwin under attack again, pedophilia continuing in the Church, whither globalization--through reviewing them as these issues appear in book form. --Terry Caesar¤

Page Updated: Robert N. Goolsby, 2-Dec-2008, , QOB-T5B-XFB-PXB-SOB-M6B-8

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