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Nigerian Nobel laureate Soyinka offers more than 30 years' worth of rewarding essays on artistic practice and cultural politics. While he is best known in America as author of the memoir AkÇ: The Years of Childhood (1982), Soyinka first made his name as a dramatist, and many of the writings collected here concern dramatic art. These include the opening essay, which expresses Soyinka's dismay with his national theater; a longer piece, written 20 years later, that surveys modern versions of traditional West African theatrical forms; and extended considerations of Aristophanes, Euripedes, and Shakespeare. Soyinka's intriguing discussions of literature and myth include a theoretical reflection in which he forges a Nietzschean model of Yoruba tragedy, centered on his vision of ``the fourth stage, the vortex of archetypes and home of the tragic spirit.'' Most of his essays here, however, focus on broader issues of African society in the world context. In early efforts, he sensitively explores the implications for African writers of the ``common backcloth'' of primitivism against which European commentators have depicted them, yet upbraids his fellow Africans for abdicating their political responsibilities in the wake of decolonization. Later essays call for the dissolution of language boundaries through the adoption of a common African tongue, and for ``a definitive end to all forms of dictatorship on the continent.'' In perceptive essays on Western culture's ``novelty system'' and on Roland Barthes, Soyinka considers the role of the critic in society while working out his ambivalent relationship to Marxism. Soyinka's prose can be murky, and too often his ``dialogues'' with other writers amount only to obscure polemics. But while some passages may seem belabored or dated, the insight and outrage that animate the best of these essays remain salient. Soyinka's voice is indomitable, and his perspective unique; his positions should be considered carefully by anyone seeking to join the struggle for culture in the postcolonial era.
None NonePub Date: May 18, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-40065-6
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Pantheon
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1994
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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