Fresh Loaf

GENRE: A debut novel about trying to write a debut novel. That’s a genre, right?

MEET SLATER BROWN, FICTIONAL NOVELIST: “He’d come to San Francisco expressly for the purpose of writing something that would last forever. Only he didn’t feel he could share this personal ambition with just anyone. They would think what? That he was a fruitcake! That he had lost contact with reality? It was a tricky situation, having a plan you couldn’t share. Nevertheless, for the first three days he exerted the plan flawlessly and with maximum concentration from the his perch in the back of TK’s. In the evenings he would reread what he’d written by the bar’s dim light. Nobody paid him a scintilla of attention.”

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BED BUGGIN': Marcela (Ana Geislerová, left) and Jarda (Roman Luknár)

A paperback copy of a Milan Kundera novel, held in the hands of a Czech expat, briefly appears in Beauty In Trouble. It’s a fleeting moment (and easy to miss), but it’s also an important gesture of respect from director Jan Hrebejk. Like the best of Kundera’s fiction, Beauty In Trouble explores the ways that politics, history, and economics can meet in the bedrooms of Prague.

The title’s Beauty is Marcela (Ana Geislerová), a down-on-her-luck mother of two. The Trouble is her husband Jarda (Roman Luknár), an unlikable brute who’s resorted to stealing and chopping cars as a full time profession. Cynical and thick-skinned, they’re scraping by in a world diminished by the Soviet Union’s failure and a disastrous flood. When Jarda lands in jail for a stolen Volvo, Marcela gets mixed up with the car’s owner, the wealthy and intellectual Evzen Benes (Josef Abrhám).

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Sometimes I forget my own mother’s birthday. In fact, it would be a serious problem if I didn’t write it down. So, don’t feel bad if you can’t remember which movies you saw this year or what they were about because we’ve been keeping track the whole time. For example, if you think Revolutionary Road was that really long movie about Che Guevera, you’re just wrong and need to read Curt Holman’s review to jog your memory. Check out this list of the top nominees after the jump:

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In The War Comes Home: Washington’s Battle Against America’s Veterans, Aaron Glantz reports on the crisis of neglect soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan face. His first book, How America Lost Iraq, chronicled a devastating firsthand account of the Bush administration’s misguided policies in Iraq. Currently a Rosalynn Carter Fellow for Mental Health Journalism at the Carter Center, Gantz leads a panel discussion around  The War Comes Home at the Carter Presidential Library Tues., Feb. 17 at 7 p.m.

What changed during the few years you spent reporting from Iraq?
When I was there in April 2003, I had gone with a real bias against the war but I confronted people who were incredibly relieved that Saddam Hussein was finally gone. Then, over a period of years, I watched that good feeling dissipate. I watched the American soldiers go from being seen as the liberators to the occupiers. I saw the Iraqi people’s opinion of the Americans really diminish to the point where most people were actually supporting the insurgency.

When did you start reporting on veterans?
These American soldiers began coming to my speaking engagements. They were interested in what I had to say because they had not been able to get the side of the story that I had. Through that kind of exchange, I began to see that I had more in common with the veterans, whose opinions were all over the political map, than I necessarily did with people who had my same kind of liberal bent. I could talk to them about the war and we would be talking about the same war. We wouldn’t be coming at it from the perspective of “politics first,” we were first coming at it from the perspective of our experience.

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Futureproof, N. Frank Daniels’ novel set mostly in and around Atlanta, is a thinly veiled retelling of the author’s own descent into teenage drug abuse and general delinquency. It’s about a white boy with dreads trying to figure himself out in the televised glow of Kurt Cobain. It’s also about half as good as it could be — full of writing that should have been reworked, trimmed, or simply cut before ever appearing in print. Daniels goes about his work with an attitude much like Luke, the story’s headstrong, willfully ignorant narrator. As a result, Futureproof comes across as a defiant but ultimately flawed debut.

Daniels, like most writers, didn’t like the idea of his manuscript gathering dust in the neglected slush piles of literary agents or book publishers. “In this age of so much media and information and distraction … Shakespeare himself would have had his work turned down” without the right connections, Daniels claims in a postscript to Futureproof. Instead of waiting around for someone to hand him a contract, Daniels published the book himself.

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GENRE: A brick-sized collection of music journalism from a decidedly Southern magazine

THE PITCH: Trendy bands and celebrity fluff pieces aren’t welcome here. OA editor and founder Mark Smirnoff wants this writing to pay “tribute to how music seeps into us.”

BLUES SISTERS: The writing is most successful when it veers far from the confines of music history, like Carol Ann Fitzgerald’s memoir-ish tale of lesbian attraction and Bessie Smith. “I slept while she rubbed my back in motel beds. Her hands clenched and declenched, just shy of hurting. We burned candles that smelled like pumpkin pie. Bessie was on repeat,” she says.

SEX PISTOLS IN ATLANTA: Mark Binelli tells the story of the Sex Pistols’ first U.S. show at a strip mall in Atlanta. Afterwards the band heads to a bar, but Sid Vicious disappears into the night. “Vicious finally turned up at Piedmont Hospital,” Binelli explains. “After scoring some heroin, he’d gotten bored and carved the words GIMME A FIX into his chest.”

STEVE MARTIN ON FAILED MUSIC ASPIRATIONS: “Obsession is a great substitute for talent.”

ALLMAN BROTHERS IN MACON: John T. Edge quotes roadie Red Dog Campbell about Mama Louise Hudson’s soul-food restaurant, “At the H&H, they didn’t care if we were black, white, or purple. Mama didn’t say anything if we were trippin’ our asses off. Now, she might tell me to come in the back door instead of the of the front when I was messed up, but really she just fed us fried chicken and loved us.” (more…)

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Matt Towery is the sort of conservative-bent political insider that doesn’t make perfect sense inside the notoriously liberal Manuel’s Tavern. But the folks down at Manuel’s are always up for a good discussion over beers, especially when it comes to politics. Promoting his latest book Paranoid Nation, Towery will take an in depth look at the political machinations behind Obama, Hillary, and McCain in the 2008 election. Towery has been on the inside track of politics since the early ’80s, back when he was campaign strategist for Newt Gingrich, so it’s a safe bet that he knows a thing or two about the political game these days. Festivities start at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 28.

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One of Atlanta’s best cinema series, Film Love, will continue a winning streak on Friday with Minutes to Go, a night of rare films and ephemera from William S. Burroughs and Brion Gysin. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Naked Lunch, perhaps Burroughs’ best-loved transgressive cut-up novel, Minutes to Go will

[explore] the surprisingly wide range of artistic experiments undertaken by Burroughs and Gysin during their Paris stay. Rare books and other items from the Danowski Collection at Emory University’s Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books Library will be on view. Also featured are the short films The Cut-Ups and Towers Open Fire, two collaborations between Burroughs, Gysin, and filmmaker Antony Balch which encapsulate on film the cut-up technique and its powerful, hallucinatory effects.

Check Eyedrum for more details.

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If you’ve ever found yourself driving a Prius home from Whole Foods while calling a friend in Brooklyn on your iPhone to tell an ironic joke, blogger and author Christian Lander owes you a “Thank You.” Stuff White People Like, his cheeky website and book of the same name, has become über popular for its riffs on clichéd white people favorites like expensive sandwiches, unpaid internships and David Sedaris. Lander will be signing books and drinking micro-brewed beers at the appropriately ironic Euclid Avenue Yacht Club on Thurs., Jan. 29.

IRONIC BARS: “White people adore bars where the regulars are likely to hate them. The more likely they are to be hated, the more the bar appeals to them. Then, of course, there is the dream of being the first white person to the bar and becoming accepted as the regular who buys everyone drinks. Then you can scoff at the white people who arrive two weeks after you.”

HI-TECH JACKETS: “White people like to have the option to go camping at the drop of a hat. These jackets help ensure that, in the rare opportunity that someone calls you for a camping expedition, no one will have to wait for you to change.”

BOOK READINGS: “As far as an activity goes, there are few that can beat a book reading. Classical Music or Opera? Too snooty. Concert? Not interactive enough. Sporting Event? Are you kidding me? Book readings are intimate, personal and more obscure.” (more…)

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Couldn’t get tickets to the sold-out Philip Glass opera, Akhnaten? The Department of Film Studies at Emory University is offering a unique way to experience the master of minimalist composition on Mon., Jan. 26:

The Department of Film Studies at Emory presents a screening of “Kundun” with a pre-screening discussion led by Philip Glass, who composed the film’s Academy Award-winning score. Glass’ introduction of “Kundun” will reveal the ways traditional Tibetan musical forms and Buddhism influenced his score and discuss his collaboration with Scorsese.

The discussion begins at 6:30 p.m. and lasts until the film screening at 7:15 p.m. Free. White Hall 208. Emory University. 404-727-6761.

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Matt Burkhalter and Jordan McAuley wrote the book on gay life in Atlanta, literally. In 2005 they published ATLANTAboy: An Insider’s Guide to Gay Atlanta — the product of Burkhalter and McAuley’s lifelong friendship and in-depth knowledge of gay Atlanta history. Since then, they’ve been tapped to author the upcoming Atlanta volume of the widely respected Out Traveler book series. Tomorrow, Saturday January 24, they’ll be speaking at the Atlanta Travel Expo on a panel entitled “Gay Travel: Hot New Destinations, Events, Tours, and Cruises.” They’ll also be discussing “staycations” in Atlanta — the latest trend in low-impact, low-cost time off. Check the Atlanta Travel Expo for more details.

The Out Traveler: Atlanta by Matt Burkhalter and Jordan McAuley will be published February 1, 2009.

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I’ll be the first to admit to being less than familiar with former Atlanta resident Dr. Joseph Lowery prior to yesterday’s stirring Inaugural benediction. By the time I started laughing through the tears he’d wrenched out of my otherwise cynical heart, though, I figured I should find out more.

A Civil Rights Movement veteran of the highest order, Dr. Lowery led the Selma to Montgomery march in 1965 on the request of Martin Luther King Jr., helped lead the Montgomery Bus Boycott after Rosa Parks’ arrest, and continued his involvement into the Free South Africa movement. He was among the first arrested in anti-apartheid demonstrations at the South African Embassy. Oh, and unlike that other Inaugural speaker Rick Warren, his notion of civil rights actually includes the LGBT community.

While Dr. Lowery’s closing remarks brought a lighthearted note to an otherwise somber ceremony, they also riff on a great song — Big Bill Broonzy’s country-blues classic “Black, Brown, and White.” Though Fox News is doing their best to stir up a controversy, I’m willing to bet they didn’t even get the reference.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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GENRE: A plate-thin, hardcover collection from a local contemporary poet

BACKSTORY: Guest, currently a visiting professor at the University of West Georgia, has been paralyzed from the neck down since a bicycle accident at age twelve.

SUGGESTIVE TITLE OF THE OPENING POEM: “User’s Guide to Physical Debilitation”

PUBLISHER’S ANGLE: Guest is the first poet Ecco has contracted in over a decade. If it’s been that long (or longer) since you’ve bought a book of poems, this would be a good place to start.

INDEX OF KNOWLEDGE: Like his contemporary Dean Young, Guest conjures information with a self-aware, surreal style. Mozart’s skull, ascetic Canadian monks, Werner Herzog, Kim Jong Il, and Wayne Gretzky all make appearances in the book, summoned like passing thoughts in an intimidating mind. (more…)

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Nami Mun’s debut novel Miles from Nowhere follows Joon, a Korean American teenager growing up on the streets of New York during the ’80s. Mun, like the protagonist, came of age as a teenage runaway on the streets of the Bronx. These days, she’s the recipient of a coveted Pushcart Prize and teaches creative writing at the Columbia College in Chicago. She comes to A Cappella Books/Opal Gallery Mon., Jan. 19, 7 p.m.

How closely is Joon based on your own experiences growing up?
Joon and I are both Korean American and we were both runaways. But the similarities pretty much stop there. I mean, what happens to her, the decisions that she makes and the events that occur in the book, are completely fictional and in many ways are much more interesting than anything that ever happened to me in my own life. Fiction is always more interesting to me. (more…)

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It’s been a big year for political art. Shepard Fairey’s soviet-styled Obama posters are still all over the place; Sarah Palin has shown up in some great paintings; and the Denver Police Union even designed some political T-shirts. In light of all this recent visual-art politicking, Beep Beep Gallery will show Popaganda, a group exhibit celebrating and criticizing contemporary and traditional propaganda.

Participating artists include Evereman, Rene Arriagada aka Transmit Device, Sat Kirpal Khalsa, Ben Goldman, Travis Dodd aka Machete, Bryan Westberry, Kerri Boles, Kim Feigenbaum,Charstarr, Stenvik Mostrom, Baxter Crane, Bean Summers, J.R. Schulz, Reed Elliot and more.

Popaganda Opens Sat., Jan. 10, 8-11 p.m. Through Feb. 8. Fri.-Sun., noon-6 p.m. 696 Charles Allen Drive. 404-429-3320. www.beepbeepgallery.com.

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GENRE: Like a Zagat or Places To See guidebook for unabashed liberals

REASONS TO HAVE THIS BOOK: Ever fretted over finding the best summer camp for your leftist children? Looking for a worker-owned, unionized strip bar? Want to eat at Studs Turkel’s favorite restaurant? The Nation Guide has you covered.

GEORGIA: Not exactly the most prominent location in the book, but we’re not off the map, either.

MANUEL’S TAVERN: Atlanta’s most revered liberal hangout is given a short but loving bio. The Nation’s version omits that Manuel’s son (and the bar’s current owner) Brian Maloof, is rumored to have some Republican leanings.

DID YOU KNOW? Eugene Debs, famed union organizer, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and founder of the IWW, lived in Atlanta from April 1919 until the end 1921. While in Atlanta, Debs ran for president and received over six percent of the popular vote, the highest ever for a Socialist Party candidate. Want to visit his old house? It’s the United States Penitentiary on McDonough Boulevard. (more…)

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Want to make a movie but don’t have a few million bucks lying around? Chris Wyatt, producer of Napoleon Dynamite, will be speaking about making movies on a budget at WonderRoot this Wed., Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. He should know a thing or two about making a small budget work— Dynamite has grossed more than 100 times the original costs. So, if you’re looking for some tips for your first (or next) feature, interested in a peek behind the scenes of independent film, or just curious about the correct pronunciation of “quesadilla,” this would be the guy to talk to.

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You might have seen Scott Turner Schofield in the much-lauded Becoming a Man in 127 Easy Steps, his solo stage performance that sold out Atlanta’s 7 Stages for a number of performances last fall. Schofield has garnered much acclaim around Georgia as well the nation, topping year-end lists from Southern Voice and Creative Loafing to the nationally published Advocate. In just a few hours, though, the stage for this transgender artist is about to get much bigger. Collaborating with other artists as far flung as Los Angeles, Austrailia, and El Salvador, Schofield will take part in 24 Hours 24 Artists — a worldwide, online collaborative performance designed to ring in 2009. Check out the website to find out about the other participating artists, but don’t delay — the performance begins at 11 p.m. tonight.

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GENRE: Collected nonfiction of a gonzo journalist

PROFILED PERSONAS: Wounded Iraq War vets, junkie musicians, L.A. gang members, high I.Q. misanthropes, Hawaiian meth-heads, Vietnam vets living in Thailand, a few maligned celebrities, and an elusive Marlon Brando

BOLD PRINT: Sager’s essays have been published in the Washington Post, Rolling Stone, GQ, Esquire, and many other discerning publications. His writing inspired the films Boogie Nights and Wonderland. He even interned for Creative Loafing back in the ’70s.

CENTRAL METAPHOR: Though the essay “Wounded Warriors” is about a group of Iraq War vets, the title is an apt description for any of the conflicted addicts and wayward personalities among the pages.

A 680-POUND MAN SAYS: “I’ve always been fat. I don’t even know what it’s like to be thin. It’s like being born blind — you have no idea what sight is.”

AN IRAQ WAR VET FROM GEORGIA REMEMBERS: “I woke up on the ground. I was like, Shit. I felt like I’d got hit by a damn fucking truck. There was blood everywhere. My neck was ripped open. See here on my neck? My little happy face made out of scars? It wasn’t that happy at the time.”

A JUNKIE IN MANHATTAN ADMITS: “I hate to admit it, but dope is the best thing in the world. I swear to God, it’s like cheating death. I’m a thrill seeker, I guess.”

WOMEN SAY: Almost nothing in the entire book. Despite Sager’s over-the-top efforts to travel to remote locales and immerse with subjects, it seems that women have proven too hard to reach for his journalistic efforts.

MARLON BRANDO SAYS: Nothing either. Sager chases Brando around Tahiti without managing to get a single quote. Sager’s hunt for Brando becomes, instead, an adventure in profiling himself.

HYPE QUOTE FROM THE COVER: “This collection of pieces from Mike Sager is just brilliant — brave, written with soul and beauty, and unflinching in the depiction of a real America that needs to be revealed,” Buzz Bissinger, author of Friday Night Lights.

Wounded Warriors by Mike Sager. Da Capo Press. $16.95. 288 pp.

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GENRE: Gritty, inner-city coming-of-age novel

FIRST LINE: “I’d been at the shelter for two weeks and there was nothing to do but go to counseling or lie on my cot and count the rows of empty cots nailed to the floor or watch TV in the rec room, where the girls cornrowed each other’s hair and went on about pulling a date with Reggie the counselor because he looked like Billy Dee Williams and had a rump-roast ass.”

NARRATOR VS. AUTHOR: Miles from Nowhere is narrated by Joon, 13, a Korean immigrant living in the Bronx who runs away from home. Nami Mun, 40, is a Korean immigrant who grew up in the Bronx and ran away from home as a teenager.

THE PUBLISHER CLAIMS: “Miles from Nowhere will haunt and inspire a generation of readers.”

NEGATIVE PRESS: An Amazon.com reader says, “This book is wacky…I just wanted it to be over…the book was written so scatter-brained that I thought I was reading journal entries.”

AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHICAL COMING-OF-AGE MOMENT: “During my runaway years, I kept a journal. I’d write down the events of the day, mostly while riding the subways. Once I sat next to a woman, and I could tell she was reading over my shoulder. I’d write a sentence and she’d make tiny sounds — of either disapproval or dismay. The more I wrote, the louder and more demonstrative she became, saying things outright sometimes and shaking her head. What I remember most is how she never addressed me directly. I don’t think she even saw me, really. Her eyes stayed on my journal and I got the sense that even if I didn’t exist in her world, my words could.”

RESUME BOLD PRINT: Mun graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, received her masters from the University of Michigan, and teaches creative writing at Columbia College Chicago. She is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize and scholarships from the Corporation of Yaddo and the MacDowell Colony.

BIG NAME HYPE FROM THE BACK COVER: “Suspenseful, funny, painful, and poetic, Nami Mun’s debut shows a talent for close observation and a prose which fills the grit of street life with flashes of gold.” — Janet Fitch, author of White Oleander

Nami Mun comes to A Capella Books/The Opal Gallery on Jan. 19, 7 p.m.

(Photo courtesy Amazon.com)

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