Archives for the ‘Words On Words’ Category

February 28, 2010

By James S. Bark • Feb 28th, 2010 • Category: Words On Words

I regret to report that I am still not through UNDER THE DOME. However, I’m getting closer. In the meantime, I had an interesting conversation that got me thinking about how I’ve changed as a reader, and seem to be slowing down as I get older.



February 14, 2010

By James S. Bark • Feb 14th, 2010 • Category: Words On Words

it’s always refreshing to pick up a book by a writer you’ve never read, but who often seems to be mentioned in glowingly positive terms, and find yourself enjoying the story they’ve put together. More than that, to find the book not quite like anything else you’ve read before, here in an age where libraries can be downloaded in an afternoon, could be construed as a minor (and very entertaining) miracle.



Feb 7, 2010

By James S. Bark • Feb 7th, 2010 • Category: Words On Words

J.D. Salinger passed away a few days ago. He’s most famous for Catcher in the Rye of course, although he wrote several other stories as well, but I have the sneaking suspicion that, if he were here, old J.D. Would prefer I not talk about him, so let’s focus on something else instead:



January 24, 2010

By James S. Bark • Jan 24th, 2010 • Category: Words On Words

My apologies for the silence since the New Year. I haven’t gotten any columns out this month, and I feel bad about that.



December 30, 2009

By James S. Bark • Dec 30th, 2009 • Category: Words On Words

One of the reasons why I’ve tried to champion reading fiction over the past year is that, when it’s well-written, fiction can be incredibly powerful. Powerful enough to change the way we look at the world around us, for better or worse. Let me give an example that shows I mean this quite literally: