Call it a lack of interest, but my town’s local bookstore closed about two years ago. A mom and pop shop. I assumed a chain store would swoop in to save the day, but no dice. As of today, there are no bookstores in my little burg (there’s still the library, thank God). My wife to be and I, both avid readers and writers, take a monthly trip 30 miles north to the nearest bookstore. A trip with a new adventure every time. Read the rest of this entry →
In light of Malcolm X’s assassin being released from prison…
In our household, Malcolm X’s name came up with Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks. Our “big three”, though I’m sure it differs from home to home. What I knew of him was limited to whatever my parents said and scholastic blurbs read during Februaries. In 1992, Spike Lee did this child a favor by directing X starring Denzel Washington. I consider the movie to be a template for all biopics: with three hours, Lee did as much as he could to avoid deviations between life and art. Which explains, in part, Lee’s need to shake people down for funding.
For the next seven years, I regarded X as the definitive work on Malcolm X’s life and death. It wasn’t until 1999, at age seventeen, that I got around to reading the actual source material for the movie, The Autobiography of Malcolm X (written alongside Alex Haley). It’s funny how books find you at the precise, formative period in your life. Read the rest of this entry →
@thomasdemary