Deliciously Addicting: Didion’s Play It as It Lays

I began reading Joan Didion’s Play It as It Lays over Spring Break with the idea that since I have already read so much of her nonfiction, I should sample one of her novels. To say I wasn’t prepared for the emotional onslaught is an understatement.
Her opening line intrigued me. “What makes Iago evil? Some [...]

An Interview with Louise Hornby

As a part of the Joan Didion Reading Series, Professor Louise Hornby delivered her lecture on “Repetition, Time, and Loss in The Year of Magical Thinking.”   As one of Professor Hornby’s former students, I can assure you that the lecture was both engaging and thought-provoking.  If you were unable to attend the event, be sure [...]

The White Album: Joan Didion on The 1960’s & 70’s,The Doors, Jaycees and music people

            Finishing Joan Didion’s collection of essays on the 1960’s and 70’s, “The White Album,” I’m reminded of why Didion is one of my, and America’s, favorite writers. Posted below are a few of my hundred-something favorite passages from her collection…
Didion on the bridge of the 1960’s and the 1970’s, California 
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Tulane English Professor Dissects Didion’s Psychology

Louise Hornby’s lecture on “Repetition, Time, and Loss in The Year of Magical Thinking” last Tuesday, March 17, marked the second event in the Joan Didion Reading Series. Over 30 local high school students attended, as well as Tulane students and faculty, and members from the community. The next, and last, event before Didion’s visit [...]

In Class With Billy Collins

Thanks to the Creative Writing Fund and the Department of English at Tulane, former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins was able to visit a creative writing class before his reading in the Poet Laureate Series. It was an ideal opportunity to meet the author I’ve read much of the past few years.
I’ve always been struck [...]

The Joan Didion Reading Series: Writing with Confusion and The California Conundrum

            The Joan Didion Reading Series was kicked off last Tuesday with Tulane English Professor Michelle Kohler’s lecture “Where She Was From: Joan Didion and the Conundrum of Place.” The series will continue on March 17th and again on April 1st, in anticipation of Joan Didion’s appearance on April 6th, as [...]

Claire Messud: If You Don’t Know Her, You Should

Claire Messud, the current Zale Writer-In-Residence at Tulane University, gave a reading this past Monday, March 9th, from her novel The Emperor’s Children. She stayed to sign books and chat after her reading, more than willing to talk with anyone and everyone, and doing so with a wide smile. On Thursday evening, Professor Paula Morris [...]

The Value of the Word

Billy Collins speaks at Tulane in less than a week – precisely, in 4 days – 7pm on March 16th, in McAlister Auditorium. Our final preparations are underway – distributing posters and flyers, publicizing the reading on Facebook, generally doing everything conceivable to ensure that the event is a success. As those of us involved [...]