I finished World Pacific--Peter Mann's latest novel--in a glorious burst of reading at 8 in the morning, having been up almost all night. Couldn't sleep--just had to keep reading. And when I closed the book, I thought... What was that all about? W…
For the last few days, reporters have been desperately searching for a logical explanation as to why Trump would do something so illogical as start a war with Iran. It's a challenging mission cause there's no logical explanation other than the one …
I know from my own experiences that every family has it secrets, but the secrets revealed by Christine Kuehn in her gripping family memoir are--well, I mean... Let's just let them speak for themselves. And keep in mind as you’re reading this—Chris…
If I had a pantheon of super-smart lefties who influenced my life, Noam Chomsky would be right up there with Kurt Vonnegut. I loved Vonnegut's books. Still read Slaughterhouse Five from time to time. Vonnegut could reduce the atrocious hypocrisies…
On February 6, I woke to discover Trump had posted a video, depicting the Obamas as apes. Still half asleep, I thought... You gotta be kidding me--how low will this fucker go? A few minutes later the Associated Press offered their assessment, rep…
There I was, walking along Wabash Street through the heart of Boyle Heights, a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood in Los Angeles, when who did I see looking back at me? Melania! Well, not in person. She was on a bus-shelter poster beneath a plate…
It’s sort of a miracle that I even checked A Terrible Country out of the library, much less read it. It’s a sad book. A sweet and sad book, it’s true. With absurdly funny moments that made me laugh. Also true. And a “happy” ending—more or less. Bu…
In the aftermath of the Bears' stunning come-from-behind playoff victory over the dreaded Green Bay Packers, it's time to reveal the inside story of the behind-the-scenes hero, who made it all possible. Here goes… I was in California, visiting fam…
In my desperation to find something positive to say about Trump's invasion of Venezuela, I've come down to this... He’s telling the truth—sorta. That is, after he's done lying. So you might say he's the most truthful liar in the history of America…
In most coming-of-age novels, there occurs that life-changing moment when the protagonist comes face-to-face with the realization that grown ups can be abundantly full of shit. I love that moment in part because I’ve been motivated to expose the hy…
Peter Orner’s latest novel–The Gossip Columnist’s Daughter–is so good, I wish I hadn’t read it. So I could enjoy the first-time experience of reading it again. It deals with a subset of Chicagoans from the last half of the last century—relatively …
I need to make an apology and a correction, and I need to make them fast! They have to do with One Winged Dove, a song by Stevie Nicks. You know the one–it goes… “Just like a one-winged dove–ooh, baby, ooh.” Now for my corrections, and I’ve got…
I’m gonna interrupt reading the book I’m reading to tell you about the book I’m reading. Because I’m having so much fun reading it—gotta let everybody know. It’s Masters of the Game–A Conversational History of the NBA in 75 Legendary Players by …
Many years ago when I was just a kid, I loved Norm Van Lier with a passion that’s hard to explain and embarrassing to admit. He was the six-foot-tall guard on the Bulls, usually the shortest, skinniest guy on the floor. But he played with a fearles…
It was late at night and I was home alone watching a movie, when the text came in. Back to the Future, if you must know--the movie I was watching, that is. Sad to say—it didn’t stand the test of time. Another topic for another day. So, focus, Benny…
This week I took a trip inside my brain—here’s how it went down… Every few months or so, Charles Henderson, peace activist extraordinaire, comes on my podcast to talk about the issues of the day–with me asking the questions. Then, as we’re wrappin…
I was on the phone with this super-smart young journalist. Call her Nell--as that’s her name. And I made a wisecrack that caused Nell to laugh and say, “you’re funny.” To which I reflexively said the first thing that popped into my mind… “Funny? …
One day a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon two collections of stories by Alice Munro–Runaway and Dear Life. Found them in a book barn just up the street. Thought–man, what a find! Munro’s one of the great writers of the last 50 years–Nobel laureate. A…
There are so many reasons I love One Battle After Another--Paul Thomas Anderson's latest movie--it's hard to mention them all. So I'll keep it to one--the sensei. That would be Sergio St. Carlos, the character played by Benicio del Toro, who's call…
By the time I met Tony Fitzpatrick, he was already a Chicago legend. This was the fall of 2006. By chance, our children attended the same high school. And I saw him at a parent-teacher conference night, sitting in the last row to meet with Ms. Gall…
It’s been so many years since Malcolm X was murdered that his afterlife is as important as the life he led. That’s sorta the theme of Mark Whitaker’s book, The Afterlife of Malcolm X. A book I devoured in two or three nights, just couldn’t put it d…
Among the things I learned from last Sunday’s New York Times is that JD Vance trolled Pope Leo XIV with impunity, when they met back in May. I learned about this from a letter to the editor written by Allen J. Wiener, alerting me to an essay I’d pr…
For almost 40 years, I’ve been urging my lefty friends to please, please, please vote Democratic in the general election. Any general election. But especially presidential ones. I've told them things like… Think of the courts! Or... Sometimes …
When I settled down to read this week’s New York Time's book review, I had no intention of buying or ordering any new books. You hear that? No intention! Already have enough unread books I’m intending to read. They fill the table in my living ro…