The (Online) Aardvark

Franzen on books, e-books, and permanence

2012-02-09T14:16:00.000-08:00

I missed this the first time around, maybe you did, too—but that's okay...at least for now.

Let me explain: in the world of digital text, there is really no such thing as "permanent," so even though I'm (re)posting this here for posterity, it may not be with us as long as it would if I printed it on paper.

According to the LA Times, this was the point Jonathan Franzen made while speaking about e-books to participants at a book festival in Cartagena, Colombia.

“Maybe nobody will care about printed books 50 years from now, but I do. When I read a book, I’m handling a specific object in a specific time and place. The fact that when I take the book off the shelf it still says the same thing -- that’s reassuring," he said, the Telegraph reports.

"I think, for serious readers, a sense of permanence has always been part of the experience. Everything else in your life is fluid, but here is this text that doesn’t change. Will there still be readers 50 years from now who feel that way? Who have that hunger for something permanent and unalterable? I don’t have a crystal ball. But I do fear that it’s going to be very hard to make the world work if there’s no permanence like that."

Franzen is right on. It IS going to be hard to make the world work if there is no permanence. To eliminate permanence is to eliminate history, and when you erase history, facts start to change. Of course, you don't need me to tell you this. George Orwell covered all of this in 1984—a book you may want to re-read sooner rather than later if physical books are truly becoming a thing of the past.

Words...and Acts

2012-01-25T12:33:00.000-08:00

The fiction section in of the College Park

Community Library.

For some time now, I've been doing a lot of talking...and writing... about books and why I think they're superior to all this e-reading nonsense. Well, I' have been flapping my gums about it here too much, but, in addition to the above, I've also spent a lot of time over the past few months ensuing that my money and mouth were in the same place.

At the close of last summer, I got the idea of establishing a library in my community. Now, some six or seven months later, I'm pleased to say that, with the help of some die-hard locals who shared my vision and the incredible generosity of a local church, the College Park Community Library is on the cusp of opening its doors to the pubic.

The next issue of The Aardvark, which is behind schedule because I've been spending so much of my "free" time with the library, will contain some writing about this endeavor. So if you're interested to know how we did it and how the joint has been received by the community, stay tuned for that.

Availability: an unexpected advantage of real books

2012-01-16T09:27:00.000-08:00

You know where I stand: I think the e-books are lame and that e-readers, rather than tools to enhance the experience of getting lost in a good book, are anathema to it. You may disagree and that's fine. Yet, wherever you come down on e-book technology, you've got to agree that subject of this article is surprising to say the least.

Maybe peeling our eyes from the screen, going out in the world, and using them to find an actual book on a library shelf isn't as antiquated an idea as some people seem to think it is.

As demand for e-books soars, libraries struggle to stock their virtual shelves (Washington Post)

Happy reading.

One Minute Zine Reviews on Issue 3 of The Aardvark

2011-12-08T08:44:00.001-08:00

Here's a Review of the Aardvark (issue #3) from One Minute Zine Reviews—a New Hampshire-based blog, paper zine, and radio show produced by DJ Frederick. If you're a fan of independently produced publications (and radio!), check it out!

The Aardvark #3

full size / 20 pp $2

I don’t know what the scientific evidence is, however in the past two decades I have subjectively observed a decline in not only the quantity of people who read for enjoyment or education, but also the quality of the reading process itself. People’s attention spans have been subverted by television and the internet, e-readers, ipads, and an endless array of gadgetry.

The tactile and tangible experience of reading books is a joy, one that humans have connected with for hundreds of years. Deep reading involves attention, thought, and reflection with minimal distraction. Deep reading is an essential ability that shapes critical thinking and comprehension skills.

Art Vark’s newsletter / zine The Aardvark is an affirming, literate publication that asks us to be mindful of the relationship between reading and technology, and our own reading habits and choices. The Aardvark is a celebration of words on paper. Corporate CEOs like Steve Jobs (RIP) and whomever is the CEO of Amazon would have us abandon the ship of books and paper like passengers fleeing the Titanic. The problem is: corporate technocrats haven’t thought about the societal implications of such a rash act. They have only thought about billions in profits to be gleaned from digital culture consumers.

The Aardvark moves fluently through philosophical discussions and introduces the reader to some thought provoking, overlooked tomes. There is more substance within its 20 pages than I’ve read in some full length books. If you care about the act of reading, and the future of reading, I propose immersing yourself in these pages.

I recognize the irony of cheerleading for the world of paper on a blog. Yet I seek balance – this blog is also a paper zine and even a radio show. I do 95% of my reading away from a screen, and will always choose paper over an “e-anything”. As we plunge deeper into the digital age, paper zines like The Aardvark may become archaic, or they may not – they may become the impetus for thoughtful discourse that moves us in a direction of equilibrium and reason.

Aardvark Review from New Issue of Zine World

2011-12-07T06:52:00.001-08:00

The Aardvark (Issue #2 - Summer 2010): "This good looking ans well-made zine ... has four main articles plus zine reviews with pics—nice. The four entries center around books, authors, and their ideas. My favorites were the first entry that suggests a philosophy where you follow your bliss," follow what you love; and the second, how libraries are too often dumping their books. Recommended for contemplative book readers."

Thanks Zine World!

What Is an Ad?

2011-11-26T08:34:00.001-08:00

Today's Washington Post has an interesting article about some recent Twitter phenomenon (that I of course would not have known about had I not been reading the PAPER version of the newspaper) called "#FridayReads."

Basically, the hashtag was thought to be a series of tweets by famous authors and others who simply wanted to tell their "followers" what they were reading. Eventually, though, some of the hashtag's users realized then that the originator of the tag and her small staff earned money off it -- that the whole thing was just a secret commercial for publishers.

Once again, it seems the web, which was once championed as the greatest thing for freedom of expression since the mouth, is really just a giant tool for advertisers to use in their relentless quest to find out what makes us tick.

From the article:

"Two weeks ago, users including New York Times best-selling author Jennifer Weiner began to tweet that the hashtag made money off contributors. Author Maureen Johnson wrote on Twitter: “I didn’t realize it was a moneymaking business where publishers paid to promote books.

"Others followed suit, surprised that what they saw as a simple communal love of books helped a group make money. When I spoke to Johnson that day on the phone, I wondered: What’s the difference between contributing to #FridayReads and Twitter? The issue seems to me a microcosm of a much larger social-media message: Companies make money selling your conversation to advertisers."

Between the pages

2011-11-18T09:47:00.001-08:00

A few years ago, I had the pleasure of working at a large used bookstore -- a book warehouse, actually -- and one of my favorite tasks was the shelving of the new stock. Not only did it give me a first-hand look at the new titles coming in the door, it also gave me a chance to flip through whatever was in my hands and unearth the treasures the books' previous owners inadvertently left behind. Most often, this booty took the form of bookmarks, which I always kept (despite having hundreds of these things, I never seem to have one around when I need one). Every so often, though, I found something more exotic, like a family photo, someone's personal writing, postcards, and so. One time, while handling a copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula, I came across a postcard with a picture of the ruins of a castle that, according to person who wrote on the back of it, "inspired Stoker to write the story."

Anyway, while searching the "book news" today, I came across the following review of “Forgotten Bookmarks: A Bookseller’s Collection of Odd Things Lost Between the Pages.” Seeing it made me think of the time I spent working in that bookstore and so I thought I'd share it with you here. Enjoy.

Slow Reading in the Digital Age

2011-10-26T09:23:00.000-07:00

"Digital reading encourages us to become fast scanners rather than deep readers, extracting the information we desire and quickly moving on. 'When you accelerate things that should not be accelerated, when you forget how to slow down, there is a price to pay,' writes Carl Honoré (author of the best-selling In Praise of Slow) who recommends deliberately slow reading as one method of dealing with the hyperactivity of late modernity."

Here is a nice article -- it's really a thorough review of two books pertaining to reading -- that addresses many of the issues and themes that I have been flapping about for the past few years, namely the difference between reading and what often passes for reading in the digital age (hint: it's a about more than putting your face in front of a bunch of words). As the article's author puts it,

Digital reading encourages us to become fast scanners rather than deep readers, extracting the information we desire and quickly moving on.

In addition, the review provides a nice list of books to look in to.

Enjoy.

The One Last Human Thing Left

2011-10-13T13:38:00.000-07:00

I don't know how you feel about the Occupy Wall Street protests (I think they're spectacular...) and I don't know what you think of former Florida democratic congressman Alan Grayson, but he's been making the rounds of the usual liberal talk shows lately and saying some interesting stuff...stuff that points to realities beyond the OWS protests and even politics.

To see what I'm talking about, check out this clip from the Rachel Maddow show in which Grayson echoes something I've been saying for some time now (both on this blog as well as on my other one): step away from the computer screen and make something happen in the real world, or, as the congressman puts it, "in this world of the Internet you can show yourself ... they're doing the one last human thing left. They're going somewhere."

The Future of the "Book Arts" in the Digital Age

2011-10-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

"As the digital and the electronic age progresses, people become more interested in spending some of their time away from the screen." — Marnie Powers-Torrey

For some time now, we've been hearing about the "death of books," the "death of print," and the like. Well, here's an interesting piece I came across today that deals with one aspect of the book world that people don't talk about too much when they flap about the demise of books (be it real or imagined) -- the so called "book arts."

The following is an interview with Marnie Powers-Torrey, managing director of the Book Arts Program at the University of Utah (purportedly the only such program in the Inter-Mountain West), and while the digital cheerleaders out there may poo-poo such a discipline as the last vestiges of a soon-to-be-bygone era, Ms. Torrey makes an interesting case for how book arts "offers a bridge between disciplines."

Admittedly, some of this interview gets into the nuts and bolts of the academic program at the U of U, which might not be of much use to some readers. Nevertheless, Ms. Torrey makes some good points about physical books that lovers of the medium (myself included) will find most pleasing. For example:

"...people want to interact with a physical book when it’s convenient to do so. It’s a more enjoyable experience, and it celebrates humanity in a way that interacting with an electronic device won’t ever."

You go, Ms. Torrey.

Reviews of The Aardvark

2011-08-17T12:19:00.000-07:00

Some reviews of The Aardvark

From: www.razorcake.org

A well-written zine, The Aardvark is, to use their subtitle, “Celebrating words on paper.” The first essay is a reflection of Joseph Campbell juxtaposed with the author’s dissatisfaction of his employment at a bookstore. The Aardvark is an attempt by the author to “follow his bliss,” or to explore his relationship with books. The essays within certainly reflect this goal with one noteworthy and well researched endeavor about libraries and the change from being book-oriented to being a computer-oriented place. I read many of the articles that he cited in the article and came to a similar conclusion. The Aardvark packs five articles into its seventeen pages and mixes in a few pages of zine reviews. It’s a thought-provoking zine with a clean lay out and worth your time. (Red Roach Press, PO Box 771, College Park, MD 20740).

From: http://sddzine.blogspot.com/

Joe Smith aka Art Vark, loves the written word, particularly when those words are written on paper, and can be found in libraries and bookstores. He has a lot of opinions and theories as to the future of this medium and shares them throughout this zine, which is mostly what this issue is about. I really enjoyed reading about this as it is something that most people who love books and zines can relate to. These opinions and theories are not knee-jerk and appear to be very well thought out with quotes and statistics punctuating many of his points. There are also some zine and book reviews and a nice intro about what it means to “follow your bliss”. As a lover of hidden bookstores in forgotten parts of town, second hand store book finds, and the great zine underground, I don’t have the same level of anxiety about the decline of the print format that Joe mourns in this zine. I do, however, appreciate his take on it and look forward to more of his words on paper.

From: http://syndicatedzinereviews.blogspot.com

A zine for book lovers and library fanatics and basically anyone who loves to read words on paper. Convinced that we are in the last days of the printed word, Art Vark offers his desperate plea for folks to pry their eyes away from the screen and stick their face in a book. Mr. Vark's points are pretty persuasive, however, for those who have fully embraced the digital age and don't see the loss of the printed word as a problem, this zine is probably going to seem like an idealist's nostalgic whine-fest. I'm not saying that I see it that way, I'm just saying that there are folks out there who just won't get it. Regardless, I highly recommend giving this zine a read. It's a well-written, well-intentioned, quality publication. The introduction's theme of "follow your bliss" is very compelling. The discussion of bookless libraries is quite interesting and thought-provoking. A piece entitled "Words to Live By" is intelligent and easy to relate to. Several pages of zine reviews are also included. Get yourself a copy and read a few words on paper for a change.

Why Did Borders Fail?

2011-08-17T10:48:00.000-07:00

Do you know? I don't. This lady thinks she does. Is she right? Listen and find out.

Why Did Borders Fail? (Podcast)

University of Michigan marketing professor Aradhna Krishna, discusses the reasons.

A Lending Library in College Park?

2011-08-15T10:06:00.000-07:00

I find it both sad and shocking that College Park -- the home of the University of Maryland -- lacks a public library (not to mention a good bookstore). To remedy that, I'm proposing that local residents band together and launch a community library.

Yet, before this dream can become reality, a lot of things need to be figured out--location, record-keeping, fees?--and a lot of hard work--cataloging!--needs to be done. Thus, volunteers are crucial to the success of this endeavor!

Interested? Then send an e-mail containing your contact info and I'll get in touch.

Thanks.

PS) Some time ago, I wrote an op-ed for College Park Patch about this.

Cruelties Unimagined

2011-06-13T20:02:00.000-07:00

"My personal belief is that because technology and economic logic has gotten so sophisticated, cruelties can be perpetrated now that would have been unimaginable two or three hundred years ago. Therefore we are under more of a moral obligation to try very very very hard to develop compassion and mercy and empathy. Which means these are very bad times in America because the American electorate is simply not interested for the most part in much of this right now."

From "A Frightening Time in America: An Interview with David Foster Wallace," New York Review of Books Blog.

New Issue of The Aardvark Now Available!

2011-06-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

Issue #3 of The Aardvark is now available.

Inside this issue:
New Looks at Old Books
The McClellan Files
Buried Treasure
Books on Books (new)
From the "Scriptures" (new)
Publications Received
And a hell of a lot more!

Get yours for a scant $2 via the mail or paypal (see the right side of the screen for more info)!

Recap: Second Last Rites (Episode 1)

2011-01-31T07:10:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, January 29, Manual Publishing and the College Park Arts Exchange teamed up to present the first installment of Second Last Rites, a reading series that aims to bring the best of the literary underground out into the light of day.

This particular event featured authors Goodloe Byron from Frederick, MD, (photo 1) and Pat King and Nik Korpon, both from Baltimore (photos 2 and 3). I won't lie: the turnout wasn't spectacular, it was a fun evening with a lot of laughs and some great writing. Goodloe read from his novel The Wraith. Pat read two essays previously published on the website cincity2000.com, and Nik read from his recently published Stay God. Good stuff.

That said, look for Episode 2 sometime in the few months and thanks to the CPAE and to the authors for making this happen. Ya'll are the best.

PS) If you're a writer, and you'd like to read at a Second Last Rites, get in touch.

Oh, it's on...

2011-01-25T19:01:00.000-08:00

SECOND LAST RIGHTS!

This Saturday, in the CP.

6:00 PM -- The Old Parish House (4711 Knox Road)

(Very) Metro Accessible - FREE!!!

See you there!

"Second Last Rites" in College Park!

2011-01-04T07:42:00.000-08:00

Will you receive Second Last Rites?

Second Last Rites -- College Park's version of Baltimore's long-running literary reading series Last Rites -- is a new reading series that gives edgy, independent authors of all stripes the chance to bare their souls in front of adoring fans and total strangers.

Be part of this new effort to put College Park on the Literary map!

Readers:

Nik Korpon -- Korpon is a resident of Baltimore and a co-founder of Baltimore's Last Rites. His novel Stay God was just published by Otherworld Publications. His stories have ruined the reputation of Out of the Gutter, Everyday Genius, Sex and Murder, Cherry Bleeds and a bunch more. Old Ghosts, his crime novella, will be released in March 2011. Give him some danger, little stranger, at nikkorpon.com

Goodloe Byron -- Byron lives on a mountain battlefield where he whiles away the evenings writing books and songs. In addition to his day job, he spends some time designing book covers for soft skull press, disruptive publishing and others. Along with Pablo D’stair he started Brown Paper Publishing back in the day. The last couple years his life has been swallowed up by the Zero Dollar Tour, which basically consists of printing up thousands of books and handing them out during haphazard voyages.

Pat King -- King is a resident of Baltimore and a co-founder of Baltimore's Last Rites. He is cofounder of the online writers community, Outsider Writers, and a former editor of the OW magazine, 1,000th Monkey. He is currently finishing up his first book, Exit Nothing.

Local Author TBA

When: January 29, 2011; 6:00 pm
Where: Old Parish House, 4711 Knox Road, College Park, MD 20740
Cost: The event is free to the public, but a suggested donation of $2 is appreciated to help cover the costs of refreshments.

Hosted by the College Park Arts Exchange, a local independent 501(c)(3), supported in part by the City of College Park and the Prince George's Arts Council. For more info, contact the CPAE at 301-927-3013.

Sponsored by Manual Publishing (of College Park) and Last Rites Baltimore.

Now on Twitter....

2010-12-29T12:53:00.000-08:00

My relationship with the Washington Times Communities has "forced" me to suckle at the techno-teet of Twittter. Thus, whenever I post some writing online, I'll mention it there.

It's Now Easier to Get Our Stuff...

2010-12-01T06:10:00.000-08:00

If you've wanted to get stuff from Manual Publishing or Red Roach Press, but don't like sending money through the mail, then today's your lucky day! That's right, we've finally hooked up with Paypal! (I hope they don't stop calling....)

Calling attention to Some "Choice Selections"

2010-11-30T12:51:00.000-08:00

I recently started posting essays about various books on the Washington Times "Communities" website under the heading Choice Selections. I'm not sure how long this little endeavor is going to last, so check it out sooner rather than later.

So far I've posted about the following:

The Good Life, by Helen and Scott Nearing (1954)
Building a Bridge to the 18th Century, Neil Postman (1999)

Enjoy.

Literary Event Coming to the CP!

2010-11-29T11:02:00.000-08:00

With the help of the geniuses who run the Last Rites reading series in Baltimore, College Park will host a reading from some of the region's most entertaining independent authors at College Park's Old Parish House on 01.29.2011.

More information will be posted here as it comes available!

Stay Tuned...

Washington Post: Teens haven't shelved reading for pleasure

2010-11-08T06:40:00.000-08:00

According to the Washington Post, "teens (still) read for pleasure, even in the digital age."

"Recreational reading has changed for teens in an era of ebooks and laptops and hours spent online, but experts and media specialists say there are signs of promise," the Post notes.

The question, however, is, What constitutes reading? For some "experts," any time a kids eyes land on a word, it equals reading.

From the article:

A detailed analysis into the trend on reading for fun - in books, newspapers and magazines - comes from researcher Sandra Hofferth of the University of Maryland, who analyzed the daily time-use diaries of a nationally representative sample of children 12 to 18.

Pleasure reading dropped 23 percent from 2003 to 2008, from 65 minutes a week to 50 minutes a week - with the greatest falloff for those ages 12 to 14. Still, she said: "They could be reading on the cellphone, in games, on the Web, on the computer. It doesn't mean they're not reading, but they're not reading using the printed page."

Michael Kamil, an education researcher at Stanford, sees it much the same way, noting that teens "still read quite a bit but in different ways and for different reasons than the adults believe they should."

The question of what constitutes "reading" has been debated for decades, said Kamil, whose definition is broad: It includes not only just books, magazines, newspapers and blogs, but also text messages, multimedia documents, certain computer games and many Web pages. "It's all important," he said.

Johnny F on Oprah and "All the Electronic Noise"

2010-10-19T14:11:00.000-07:00

Came across this today...it's part of an interview that the New Statesman (England) conducted with writer of the moment Jonathan Franzen.

"Something Oprah Winfrey has been doing, and I hope will continue to do when her show goes off the air, is to inject writers like Toni Morrison, Jane Hamilton and Cormac McCarthy into the larger consciousness. I think that as long as we can keep alive the idea of the American novelist, the experience of getting lost in a novel will become increasingly attractive and become an alternative amid all the electronic noise."

You go, Johnny.

Werner Herzog on Reading

2010-09-16T06:23:00.000-07:00

From National Public Radio's All Things Considered:

The acclaimed German director Werner Herzog holds film seminars from time to time, and people who aspire to make movies attend his Rogue Film School. He puts buckets over his students' heads, takes them out into the woods and peppers them with his musings. He also hands out a required-and-recommended reading list. Why?

"Because nobody reads — and I keep preaching, read, read, read, read. If you don't read, you will never be a filmmaker. Those who watch television or are too much on the Internet, they lose the world. And those who read, they win it."