Katie Tobin
@ Tattoo
Q:How do you keep your life clean?
A:"I don't own any cars and I do almost all my shopping from farmers markets."
THE JACKSON POLLOCK painting hanging on the back wall turns out to be the key to "The Year of Magical Thinking."
What originally looks like typical set dressing for an elegant New York apartment is puzzling at first. After all, Pollock's abstract, paint-splattered canvasses mean something different to each person who sees them.
And there's no doubt about what "The Year of Magical Thinking" means.
The one-woman play, based on the memoir of the same name, is a first-person account by essayist Joan Didion of the sudden deaths of her husband and daughter. Well, perhaps it is less about their deaths and more about the ways we cope with unimaginable grief, the tiny lies that we invent to stave off true mourning.
Continue Reading "The Patterns of Grief: The Year of Magical Thinking" »
JOSEPH PATRICK LARKIN may or may not be a rotten human being; what you think isn't important. (Except that it is, desperately so.)
The author and artist behind "The Arcade of Cruelty," an autobiographical comic-with-writing in a big, plush package, dances nimbly across the line between the persona on the page and the charmer on the phone, one disavowing the other in rapid succession.
Despite the fact that Larkin has basically opened his brain — and his past — and dumped them between covers, figuring out which is Pinocchio and which the real boy is a mug's game. What you see — collages of sexy pictures, random and fecund sketchbook excerpts, beautiful monotypes of his "real" art, pages-long attacks on fellow indie comic writers, a good chunk of annotated school yearbook and, mostly, scabrous rehashing of a truly woeful romantic history — is the worst impulses of a too-smart, cripplingly self-conscious human being retched into art and writing, and it's as funny as it is painful to read.
We spoke with Larkin from his home in Slidell, La., about the book, a conversation that devolved into rhapsodies on the alcopop Sparks, unprintable subjects and personal confession. Weird? Only if you're still reading superhero comics. You won't find anything like "Arcade of Cruelty" at a Border's near you, but you can find it at Larkin's Web site, also-ran.com.
TUESDAY: Though we just had a memoir about William F. Buckley penned by his son, author Richard Brookhiser apparently thought the market was ripe for another remembrance of the famed conservative. "Right Time, Right Place" tells the story of Brookhiser's relationship with Buckley, his hero, who later fired him from his post as editor of the National Review. No hard feelings?
» Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW; Tues., June 30, 7 p.m., free; 202-364-1919, Politics-prose.com. (Van Ness)
Photo from The Washington Post
SATURDAY: Charles Ross became famous with the "One-Man Star Wars Trilogy," where he played every character in George Lucas' opus and managed to keep the story understandable, poignant and, above all, funny.
Well, once you hit on a winning formula, you stick with it. So Ross is back with that other most famous fantasy trilogy.
No, not "Back to the Future."
In his one-man version of "Lord of the Rings," Ross takes the longest, most treasured epic of our time and turns it into a funny, snappy, costume-and-set-less hour of entertainment. Go. Your inner dork will thank you.
» Birchmere, 3701 Mt. Vernon Ave., Alexandria; Sat., June 20, 7:30 p.m., $35; 703-549-7500.
Photo by Jason Woodruff/Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
TUESDAY: P.J. O'Rourke, noted conservative humorist, has proved himself to be a savvy political satirist and writer. Now he turns from the machinations of Washington to those of a sweet 5-cylinder engine in "Driving Like Crazy," his latest book of essays. It's about cars, his own obsession with them — and America's. You can find out what he thinks about the future of the automobile industry tonight.
» Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW; Tues., June 9, 7 p.m., free; 202-364-1919. (Van Ness)
Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images
FOR PLACEMENT LAWYER AND and author Jeffrey G. Allen, landing a job interview starts with "The Magic Four Hello." Making direct eye contact, smiling, introducing yourself and offering a firm handshake can go a long way toward ensuring that you get a sit-down with the manager or business owner who has a job to fill. In his new book, "Instant Interviews: 101 Ways to Get the Best Job of Your Life" ($16.95, Wiley), Allen details the networking strategies that have helped him and others make connections and get hired. We spoke with the job search guru about how everyday encounters can lead to career-changing meetings.
» EXPRESS: Why shouldn't people just rely on traditional "help wanted" listings when looking for a job?
» ALLEN: Traditionally, people chase after what they think are job openings, but those are really just a construct of, in many cases, what a group thinks that they want. Anybody who's ever worked in the HR field knows that a job order is really nothing but a wish list that goes through a committee and gets signed off on. As all successful people know, you really create your own job. Instant interviews work from a very human, one-on-one interaction. It's a disciplined, systematic, focused, step-by-step approach that anyone can do and that works simply because it's based upon human interaction.
» EXPRESS: Why are instant interviews so important in today's job market?
» ALLEN: So much of what we have in our society is based upon what other people tell us, based upon what the media tells us, based upon what the job description says, based upon what some employer thinks they want when honestly they don't have a clue. The only way that anybody ever gets a job is by self-help. Even the government doesn't knock on your door and give you a job without you doing anything. So, you must initiate action, but it has to be a very specific action or you don't get hired.
Continue Reading "Meet to Compete: Author Jeffrey G. Allen On How to Get the Best Job" »
TUESDAY: Not up on your Pakistani history? You're not alone. Nicholas Schmidle spent two years in Pakistan observing the way life works there, in the cities and in Taliban camps.
His new book is "To Live or to Perish Forever," in which he attempts to explain what led to the current situation in this somethings-confusing, always complicated region of the world.
He'll be at Politics and Prose tonight, speaking about it.
» Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW; Tue., June 2, 7 p.m., free; 202-364-1919. (Van Ness)
Photo by The Washington Post
THURSDAY: Can't decide what to do tonight? We sympathize: everything happens on Thursdays. But there's no need to choose between book talks, concerts and movie screenings when you can do all of those things at once!
Well, we can think of one reason. But exhaustion is easily cured.
"The Ten" is a decidedly multi-focused event at the Sixth and I Historic Synagogue, where you can hear the unique music of "Girls In Trouble," a sort of lyrical, harmony focused pop -music-with-a-beat-and-and-appreciation-for-folk band ... it's hard to describe. You can listen for yourself here.
Rounding out the evening will be film screenings, yoga, a cooking demo and a talk with dreamy young lit god Jonathan Safran Foer, the author of "Everything Is Illuminated."
If you RSVP on their website by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, May 27, your admission is free. Otherwise, pay $6 at the door.
» Sixth and I Historic Synagogue, 600 I St. NW; Thu., May 28, 7 p.m., free if you RSVP by Wednesday, May 27, $6 at the door; 202-408-3100. (Gallery Place)
TUESDAY: Barbara Bradley Hagerty, who covers the religion beat for National Public Radio, puts her investigative experience to use in "Fingerprints of God," a book about the measurable physical effects of spirituality and prayer.
This isn't an indoctrination thing, though — Hagerty is one of very few journalists working today who is able to cover religion without showing bias or condescension, and she won't try to convert you.
» Politics & Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW; Tue., May 19, 7 p.m., free; 202-364-1919. (Van Ness)
Photo courtesy NPR
MONDAY: If you're feeling miserable about our struggling economy and various national crises, you need some Irish poetry. And no one elucidates miserable like the bards of the Emerald Isle.
Check out Eamonn Grennan, an accomplished poet who's reading at the Folger Theatre tonight. His work is heartbreakingly open without being simplistic or ringing false. After the reading, you can meet the author.
» Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol St. SE; Mon., May 18, 7:30 p.m., $12; 202-544-7077. (Capitol South)
Photo by Neal Greig
Addison Road