Dark, Mysterious, Radiant
Bithika Mukerji, Life and Teachings of Sri Ma Anandamayi: A Bird on the WingSri Satguru Publications, 1997 This is a work similar in aim to The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, but about 1/5th the length. …
Author: Mark J. Chmiel
Some Works Are Greater Than Others
Edward W. Said, Power, Politics, and Culture: Interviews Edited and with an Introduction by Gauri ViswanathanPantheon Books, 2001 Two writers who are well known for their championing of the literary canon are Harold Bloom and George…
Share the Wealth with Megi Celaj–The American Dream and the Lives We Left Behind: An Exploration into the Culture, History, and Current Status of Albania
In the last 10 years, Immigration topics have become increasingly mainstream in both media and politics in the United States. As the topic of immigration will continue to protrude America’s political and social agenda, I…
Remembrance of Teachers Past
Elie Wiesel, Somewhere a Master: Further Hasidic Portraits and Legends This is Elie Wiesel’s third of four installments thus far on his favorite Hasidic teachers, the ones whose tales enchanted him in his childhood, the…
Stamps and a Poem
Lawrence Ferlinghetti, An Elegy to Dispel Gloom
The Plan
My friend Andrew Wimmer’s comment on the above: Of course they have. It was never “on the table.” It’s not a shame, it’s the plan.
Planting Companionship
Calamus is one of the riches sections of Leaves of Grass! I recognized many poems worth rereading and sharing with others. Some will be full memorized, others in part. Allen Ginsberg wondered why the Gay…
Why Did All Those People Die?
W. D. Ehrhart, The Madness of It All: Essays on War, Literature, and American Life [2002] This is a collection of the Vietnam veteran and poet’s prose pieces up till 9.11. Some are quite short…
Check out Matt Taibbi on Substack
For the past year I have been a supporter of Matt Taibbi’s project, TK News, on Substack. Here’s a recent paragraph from his “Democrats Swoon Over George W. Bush, In Match Made in Hell”– A…
Say Yes!
Wednesday 22 September 2021 Dear J, It was energizing and inspiring to spend two-and-a-half hours with you yesterday at Hartford Coffee! I want to share a bit more with you about one of the books…