Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind

Memorial Day Weekend Smatterings

I think I'm pretty well recovered from BEA now, though as happens every year, it split my brain in several directions and will take a little while to put everything back together. But one of the highlights was talking with Lee Child, Karin Slaughter and Justin Cronin on Thursday morning, and both GalleyCat and the New York Observer took notes.

Michael Wilson visits with Partners & Crime, the West Village-based independent mystery bookstore and my "alma mater" of sorts.

Oline Cogdill reviews Declan Hughes' latest private eye novel, CITY OF LOST GIRLS, in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Hallie Ephron digs into THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE on its 40th anniversary.

The Chicago Tribune's Julia Keller talks with Lee Child about his newest #1 bestselling Jack Reacher novel, 61 HOURS.

Tom & Enid Schantz have their say on new mysteries by Kenneth Wishnia, Laurie King and Robert Barnard in the Denver Post.

Jeffery Deaver will pen the next James Bond novel, and interestingly enough, it will be released next year by Deaver's usual UK and US publishers, Hodder & Stoughton and Simon & Schuster.

Congratulations to Alan Bradley, Howard Shrier, Peter Robinson, and other winners of the Arthur Ellis Awards, handed out earlier this week.

Luc Sante praises the work of Charles Willeford - who is one of my all-time favorite crime writers - as he talks to the WSJ about I WAS LOOKING FOR A STREET, Willeford's entertaining memoir of his youth spent perpetually on the move.

I linked to the WSJ's gargantuan summer book preview package, but it's worth breaking out both Tom Nolan's mysteries & thrillers roundup and this quote from George Pelecanos on what he's reading this summer: "I'm not going to play that game. Everyone says something that sounds smart and ends up taking Michael Connelly to the beach."

Yes, Bill Clegg was a crack addict and has written a memoir about it. But the real story, to my mind, is that he's made even bigger, flashier deals for his clients since returning to agenting with William Morris Endeavor. Moral of the story: everyone loves a comeback. And that's a good thing.

John Grisham chats with the Telegraph about his first foray into children's fiction with THEODORE BOONE: KID LAWYER.

Howard Mosher reviews DIAMOND RUBY by Joe Wallace in the Washington Post, and while I wish the piece wasn't so much about plot summary (seriously?) I'm very glad to see a newspaper give this wonderful book its due!

The Guardian asks a number of writers, including John Banville, Ian Rankin and Margaret Atwood, to answer questions they've never been asked. Some of the chosen authors clearly missed the point (seriously, Barbara Trapido? No one asks you how you research your novels?) While Banville went the extra satirical mile.

And finally, how to cross the English channel with the help of helium balloons.

Living Safely in a Science Fictional Universe

The Daily Beast has been running a series devoted to emerging writers, and their first two choices - THE INVISIBLE BRIDGE by Julie Orringer and EVERYTHING LOVELY, EFFORTLESS, SAFE by Jenny Hollowell - are very much on the mark, at least in my book. So too is Charles Yu's HOW TO LIVE SAFELY IN A SCIENCE FICTIONAL UNIVERSE, which won't be published until September but which I'm pleased to be writing about now, because the book is such a joy: brainy and accessible, entertaining and ruminative.

Here's an excerpt from the piece:

Yu doesn't shy away from asking tough existential questions—is it possible to kill your own future? What does it mean to be trapped in a time loop? Can you occupy the same space in several universes?—and sparks all sorts of brain explosions in the reader with schematic diagrams, fragmented, occasionally perpendicular narratives, and humorous bullet point lists. But Yu's literary pyrotechnics come in a marvellously entertaining and accessible package, featuring a reluctant, time machine-operating hero on a continual quest to discover what really happened to his missing father, a mysterious book possibly answering all, and a computer with the most idiosyncratic personality since HAL or Deep Thought (and certainly the most memorable neuroses, including a crippling case of low self-esteem that creates boot-up havoc.)

Not surprisingly, How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe as written in a non-linear fashion. "If I were to describe the geometry of the book's construction, I guess I would say it was built from the inside out, in concentric rectangles, if that makes any sense," Yu told me in a recent e-mail interview. "I started with the idea that here's this guy, he's in a box. This box he's in is a vehicle of some sort. He's moving through space in his vehicle. But wait, it's not just space. It's time. Okay, he's in a box moving through time, but now, hold up, there's a problem, and I think this is a general issue in trying to create a time travel story, as in, what are the constraints? Because you have to have constraints in a time travel story, and probably a lot of them, otherwise there are going to be way too many degrees of freedom."

Read on for the rest, and I'll be posting some bonus material that couldn't make it into the piece closer to the publication date.

Smatterings on a Shiny Sunny Sunday

Oline Cogdill has her say on Paul Doiron's excellent debut novel THE POACHER'S SON in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Margaret Cannon reviews new crime fiction by Donna Leon, Olen Steinhauer, Paul Doiron, Jenny White, Anthony Bidulka and Garry Ryan in the Globe & Mail.

Maureen Corrigan invokes Edmund Wilson in her review of Elizabeth George's new Inspector Lynley novel, and also echoes many of my frustrations with George's most recent books (namely, was this book truly necessary?

Barry Forshaw examines the latest crime novel by Stuart MacBride, DARK BLOOD, in the Independent.

Margaret Maron delivered the commencement speech at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro this weekend. Among her advice to graduates: "Life does not come with a GPS. So pack your bags...and enjoy the ride!"

Domenic Stansberry is one of those writers whom I suspect will be appreciated most when it's too late. The SF Chronicle does their best to appreciate him now, but seriously, the Dante Mancuso novels are all worth reading.

Ryan Brown takes a cue from his mother, Sandra, in getting into the thriller writing business. But his tack is a little different - a little more undead, as he tells the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Juli Zeh chats with Anna Mundow about her philosophically minded crime novel of many titles: IN FREE FALL (US) DARK MATTER (UK) and SCHILF (her native Germany.) 

Also in the Boston Globe, John Waters discourses on his massive book collection, current favorites and why he likes to put the most shocking tomes in the guest bedroom. 

Mathew Pritchard talks with the Yorkshire Post about growing up as the grandson of Agatha Christie, administering her estate and which of her books endure the most.

Why is Emily Dickinson having her moment now? Holland Cotter investigates.

Canadian children's book icon Robert Munsch delves into his demons - some conquered, others not - with the National Post.

The Studs Terkel radio interview archive, stretching between 1952 and 1997, will be digitized. I am salivating over the hours and hours I could conceivably spend sifting through these auditory treasures.

One hundred and seventeen days of James Patterson.

Finally, with Law & Order now cancelled, what does it mean for New York City's economy?

Monday Smatterings in Time for Edgar Week

Edgar Week is soon upon us! There's the Mysterious Bookshop/MWA party on Tuesday, the symposium on Wednesday, EQMM/AHMM's early Thursday afternoon party and then the Big Show Thursday night. I am but a civilian* this time around (unless something changes in the next 72 hours...stranger things have happened), though requisite cellphone and internet addictions mean I'll probably chime in on the #edgars10 stream. Is that the official hashtag? Well, it is now.

George V. Higgins' debut novel THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE has been getting some ink all weekend, thanks in part to its recent reissue by Picador. Slate's Troy Patterson says both book and movie are must-consumables; The LAT's Richard Rayner explains how Higgins essentially recreated a genre. I admit that the first time I read EDDIE COYLE I had serious trouble, but a more recent reread clarified things, and I appreciate what Higgins was both trying to do and did. It's hard not to compare and contrast Higgins to fellow Bostonian Robert B. Parker, who was also getting his career off the ground around the same time. Both men had varying degrees of success early and then diverged; both are vital links in the modern trajectory of crime fiction. And both, I suspect, will be judged for their influence more than their actual work. 

Oline Cogdill, who will be interviewing Lee Child and Laura Lippman together at the MWA Symposium on Wednesday afternoon, reviews Andrew Gross's new thriller RECKLESS for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Marilyn Stasio runs the compliment spectrum on mysteries and thrillers by Jesse Kellerman, Declan Hughes, Peter May and Ariana Franklin in the NYTBR.

The Boston Globe's Hallie Ephron has her say on recent crime fiction by Nancy Pickard, Raffi Yessayan and Decland Hughes.

The Guardian's Laura WIlson analyzes recent crime fiction by Declan Hughes, Joanna Harris, Heather Gudenkauf and Donna Leon.

Gerald Bartell extols the virtues of Michael Harvey's new PI novel THE THIRD RAIL in the Washington Post.

In the Denver Post, Tom & Enid Schantz review new mysteries by David Downing, Barbara Cleverly and Jacqueline Winspear. 

Joan Smith explains in the Sunday Times why she adores Deon Meyer's new thriller THIRTEEN HOURS. 

Frank Wilson appreciates the quainter time evoked in the mystery novels of Jacqueline Winspear, most recently THE MAPPING OF LOVE AND DEATH.

Another weekend, another feature on Stieg Larsson and his much-dissected backstory. Oh and look, another one! And while I can sort of buy Carey Mulligan as Salander, moving the setting to Canada is just so Hollywood WTF.

Jason Pinter laments trade publishing's general inability to look beyond easy stereotypes and see that men, in fact, do read. 

The Guardian's Alison Flood raves about SJ Bolton's new thriller BLOOD HARVEST.

The Chicago Tribune's Dave Heinzmann talks with Martin Prieb, the Chicago-area cop who mined his work and life for a collection of outstanding essays, THE WAGON AND OTHER TALES FROM THE CITY.

I would appreciate this NYT piece on Irene Nemirovsky and her uncomfortable place in Jewish circles, then and now, if I could, you know, actually read the biography that Knopf is about to publish. Also, THE DOGS AND THE WOLVES, which is inexplicably not available in the US yet, is pretty outstanding stuff, and I'm chomping at the bit to read JEZEBEL, too.

Finally, there are a lot of reasons to be annoyed about Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff, but misleading book blurbs is not one of them. Roy MacGregor sets the record straight, thank god.

Sunday Smatterings, with Extra Ash

This damn volcano. Scrapping flights, stranding travelers, giving John Cleese a hell of a story to incorporate into his comedic act, scuppering research trips, canceling tours, and if this drags on and on, messing with the GDP and oh yeah, cooling the globe.

Despite global crises, I'm in a pretty good mood, in large part the result of the excellent time I had yesterday at Murder 203, which continues today at the Westport Public Library. Kudos to the organizers - especially Jane Murphy, Lisa Forman and Rosemary Harris - for the smoothly run conference and the mix of writers and readers who attended.

One of the articles I cited during one of the panels I moderated for Murder 203 was this absolutely dead-on piece by Christopher Rice on the biggest cliches male crime writers resort to when writing female characters.

Oline Cogdill reviews Ace Atkins' new historical thriller, INFAMOUS, for the Sun-Sentinel, ranking the book among her top mysteries of the year.

Margaret Cannon rounds up new crime fiction in the G&M by Quintin Jardine, Harlan Coben, M.R. Hall, Laurie King, Cara Black, Jonathan Kellerman and Vicki Delany.

The Guardian's John O'Connell looks at thrillers by Ronald Frame, Michael Harvey, Harlan Coben and Thomas Mullen.

In the LA Times, Irish noir seriously gets its due as Richard Rayner reviews Benjamin Black's ELEGY FOR APRIL and Tim Rutten has his say on Declan Hughes' CITY OF LOST GIRLS.

Julia Keller sings the praises of Simon Tolkien - grandson of J.R.R. - in the Chicago Tribune.

Library Journal has posted its annual mystery feature, this time focusing on international crime fiction (especially Russia) and how mystery backlists are going digital.

David Mitchell shares a slice of banoffee pie with the Sunday Times and talks of creating new worlds in his new novel, THE THOUSAND AUTUMNS OF JACOB DE ZOET.

How did Cemetery Dance get to publish an original short story by Stephen King? The Baltimore Sun finds out, and David Ulin reviews the story for the LAT.

Also in the Sun, there's an excellent piece on hometown author William Lindsay Gresham, author of the classic and stupendous NIGHTMARE ALLEY, just reissued by NYRB Classics.

Should Walter Mosley be considered as part of the Jewish American canon of writers? Harold Heft makes the case for Tablet Magazine.

The Seattle Mystery Bookshop has long had a sign around the corner directing potential customers to the store. Since they were forced to take it down, foot traffic has dropped off considerably and the store owners are not very happy about this at all.

And finally, that is one costly spell check fail.

Sunday Smatterings, Served Cold

Right, I didn't do one of these last week! Which made me realize that I do miss the link roundups, as long as it's not obligation and still fun. So here we go:

Marilyn Stasio reviews new crime and mystery novels by Benjamin Black, Martha Grimes, Barbara Cleverly and Jacqueline Winspear in the NYTBR.

Oline Cogdill reviews Martha Grimes' new Richard Jury novel, THE BLACK CAT, and talks with the author about the series - and its latest installment.

Patrick Anderson also weighs in with regards to THE BLACK CAT, which he enjoys for its whimsy and bizarre humor.

Adam Woog's Seattle Times crime fiction column looks at new offerings by Benjamin Black, Jacqueline Winspear, Alan Bradley, Barbara Cleverly, William Dietrich, Gregg Olsen and Alexander McCall Smith.

From last week, Margaret Cannon rounds up recent crime novels by Benjamin Black, Walter Mosley, T. Jefferson Parker, Lisa Lutz, Barbara Cleverly and Jonathan Kellerman.

The Guardian's John O'Connell has his say on crime and thrillers by Lee Child, Louise Welsh and Robert B. Parker.

Richard Rayner is impressed with the quiet strength of Gar Anthony Haywood's CEMETERY ROAD, which is much like my reaction. The book sneaks up on you and has a great deal of depth.

Ace Atkins tells the Birmingham News why he tackled the story of gangster Machine Gun Kelly in his new crime novel INFAMOUS.

Dan Wells lets the San Francisco Chronicle in on the process of creating a teen protagonist obsessed with serial killers in his new novel, aptly titled I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER.

Laura Lippman picks some of her favorite books for the NY Post's "In My Library" feature.

Michael Robotham may be a successful thriller writer (and ex-ghostwriter) but his mother is evidetly a hard customer, as he tells the Sydney Morning Herald.

Emily Raboteau and Victor Lavalle live together in a one-office apartment. With the help of an interior decorator, that changed for the better.

Stephen Benatar has spent decades handing out signed copies of his books to anyone in sight in every possible place. His persistence, as he tells the Sunday Times, paid off when NYRB Classics reissued his 1982 novel WISH HER SAFE AT HOME. And a damn good thing, too, because that book is fantastic.

Joanne Harris departs from her usual writing norm with her latest novel, a thriller set in various online communities, as she explains to the Independent on Sunday.

If you're in Canada, you're probably bombarded with reviews, interviews, and related news about Yann Martel's BEATRICE AND VIRGIL. It's interesting to see various critics tapdance around the book's many, many shortcomings. And even Martel seems to be letting off steam about the torturous process of publication. Which leads me to wonder: maybe the book shouldn't have been published after all? Or would that have been a riskier move for publishers with imperiled budgets?

The auction for Otto Penzler's British Espionage and Thriller collection took place on Thursday, and the first edition Ian Fleming books brought in a serious amount of money.

Should we have an annual anthology devoted to the best of online stories? Well, DZanc Press publishes one on the literary side, so as long as at least a healthy four-figure audience exists to read such an offering year after year, then I say, why not?

And finally, I guess this is what senior citizens are up to post-retirement these days...

Sunday Smatterings, and then a Hiatus

Janet Maslin rightly reviews new thrillers by Harlan Coben and Linwood Barclay in tandem, since both cover a lot of the same ground with varying degrees of success (I haven't read CAUGHT yet, so I can't judge, but I differ from Maslin's POV on NEVER LOOK AWAY in that David Harwood, to my mind, is just shy of likeable, and thus more realistic as guy caught in serious trouble.)

Oline Cogdill also reviews CAUGHT for the Sun-Sentinel.

Marilyn Stasio opines on new crime novels by Walter Mosley, Philip Kerr, Denise Mina and Cornelia Read in the NYTBR.

Tom Nolan sings the praises of Kelli Stanley's CITY OF DRAGONS in the SF Chronicle.

In the Boston Globe, Hallie Ephron has her say on recent crime fiction by Walter Mosley, Linda Fairstein and Cara Black.

Katherine Dunn extols the virtues of Alafair Burke's latest thriller 212 in the Oregonian.

The Times of London (which will go behind a paywall in June, so bye bye linkable crime fiction coverage at that time) has a number of goodies this weekend: John Dugdale rounds up thrillers by Lee Child, Matt Beynon Rees, Peter Temple, Joan Brady, MR Hall and Joseph Kanon, while Marcel Berlins has his say on new crime fiction by Walter Mosley, Brian McGilloway, and Juli Zeh, whose book is seriously fantastically awesome.

Helen Rumbelow's critical view of Barry Forshaw's insta-biography of Stieg Larsson has a great deal of care and analysis, though I gather she didn't really know the book was conceived, written and published in a manner of months. There is a substantive, exhaustive, Blake Bailey-style biography of Larsson to be written, and perhaps the one awaiting translation into English might be that one.

The debut crime writer known as Chevy Stevens - though I must admit, I prefer her real name, Rene Unischewski, which is messier and thus more real-sounding - has indeed written a very good and and creepy thriller with one hell of a late-act twist. STILL MISSING won't be out until July, but the G&M's John Barber has pretty much anointed it the Big Summer Read (you know, for those who won't have read or want to read THE PASSAGE by Justin Cronin...)

Mike Hodges, the director of GET CARTER and CROUPIER, has turned to writing novels at the age of 77. He explains why to the Times of London.

David Corbett fills Rege Behe on the details of his new novel, DO THEY KNOW I'M RUNNING?

When I got a copy of William L. Gresham's NIGHTMARE ALLEY, my first thought was, "what's Richard Rayner going to write about it?" Now I have my answer.

Otto Penzler is putting up the British Espionage and Thriller Fiction portion of his substantial first edition library for auction at Swann Galleries starting April 8.

Christopher Sorrentino writes of his father, the writer Gilbert Sorrentino, and the difficult task of finishing the elder's last novel, THE ABYSS OF HUMAN ILLUSION.

Jim Crace's next book will be his last.

And finally, Passover plus the ever-increasing freelance workload means I should accept the obvious, which is that Confessions is an occasional, more often sporadic, pursuit these days, and probably for the forseeable future.

Sunday Smatterings in the Sunshine

Of course I'm leading off with this piece of news: a new collection of Shel Silverstein poems will be published by HarperCollins' Childrens Books in Fall 2011. This is awesome. What would be more awesome is if some more of his works for adults, currently buried in the Archives in Chicago, would see the light of day. One can only hope!

Oline Cogdill reviews Linda Fairstein's new mystery, HELL GATE, for the Sun-Sentinel.

At the Guardian, Laura Wilson rounds up new crime novels by Jo Nesbo, Sophie Hannah, DJ Taylor and Julie Zeh.

Margaret Cannon analyzes new crime fiction offerings by Jo Nesbo, Carol Goodman, Keith Thomson, Kelli Stanley, S.J. Parris and William Peter Blatty for the Globe & Mail, which also gives Nesbo the Q&A treatment. 

Another big Jo Nesbo fan: Katherine Dunn, who reviews THE DEVIL'S STAR for the Oregonian.

Paula Woods has her say on Philip Kerr's new Bernie Gunther novel IF THE DEAD RISE NOT in the LA Times. Kerr was recently in Australia to promote the book and talks to the Sydney Morning Herald's Jason Steger.

The Independent on Sunday's Mark Timlin is bowled over by Lee Child's 61 HOURS, which sets things up rather nicely for the next book to follow this fall. 

Also in the Independent, Sophie Hannah explains why she sees the good in everyone and refuses to judge her characters in the pursuit of writing some very psychologically unnerving crime fiction.

Retired pathologist and crime writer Bernard Knight tells the BBC why he's calling it a day as a writer - because of a combination of getting older and the CSI effect.

Ian Rankin defends the genre of crime fiction (not that he has to, but I guess it was warranted?) to Deutsche Welle. Oh and looky, now it's a controversy! FFS.

Meanwhile, fellow Scottish writer Louise Welsh, whose new novel NAMING THE BONES is just out, doesn't care what label is attached to her, as she tells the Irish Times.

Alafair talks with the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review about her new thriller 212.

Will the Babysitters Club novels, about to be reissued on masse, help tweens and their parents learn how to be more resourceful and independent? So posits Laura Vanderkam in a WSJ op-ed.

The Observer reprints a chapter from Tom Bissell's forthcoming book EXTRA LIVES - a piece that goes deep into his twin addictions to cocaine and video games.

Michiko Kakutani ponders the mash-up, gets pissed off by David Shields' REALITY HUNGER, and is made uncomfortable by the internet's effect on culture, but I guess that's to be expected. In the Book Review, Ward Sutton plays with the mash-up theme in graphic format.

Finally, this is exactly why every one should and must know about jury nullification.

Sunday Smatterings on Daylight Savings Time

And let's lead off with the winners of the awards given out last night at Left Coast Crime: Alan Bradley for the Dilys, Rita Lakin for the Lefty, Rebecca Cantrell for the Bruce Alexander, and Linda Richards for the Panik. Congratulations to all the winners and nominees!

Marilyn Stasio reviews new crime fiction by Jo Nesbo, Cara Black, Simon Lelic and Robert Goddard in the NYTBR.

More Jo Nesbo coverage in the form of a Q&A at the Paper Cuts blog, reviews of THE DEVIL'S STAR at the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Washington Post and the Dallas Morning News and coverage of the newest-translated Harry Hole novel, THE SNOWMAN, at the Scotsman, the independent and

Which segues rather nicely into yet another treatment of the "why are Scandinavian crime novels so damn successful?" trope, though this one, from the Economist, is well worth reading.

Hallie Ephron has her say on recent mystery and thriller fare by Noah Boyd, Michael Kurland and Dana Stabenow in the Boston Globe.

Adam Woog looks at new crime novels by Walter Mosley, Denise Mina and Cara Black at the Seattle Times.

The Guardian's John O'Connell praises S.J. Parris (aka Stephanie Merritt) for her first historical thriller HERESY.

Another in-depth profile of Sara Paretsky runs this week on the occasion of HARDBALL, this time in the Telegraph.

The Observer's Euan Ferguson explains what makes Jack Reacher tick - and how Lee Child has attracted millions of readers.

Alan Bradley spent all weekend guest-editing the National Post's book blog the Afterword, while he and his new novel THE WEED THAT STRINGS THE HANGMAN'S BAG are written up by the Montreal Gazette, the Vancouver Sun and the Winnipeg Free Press.

The trio responsible for editing RICHMOND NOIR talk to the Times-Dispatch about how the anthology came together, and why the city is rife for dark explorations.

That in-depth biography of Gordon Brown that was supposed to be published by Bloomsbury? It's off, and the author Suzie MacKenzie, has returned the lucrative advance.

Mark Medley looks at the joys and complications of what happens when an author moves from a small press to a larger, more mainstream publisher.

Dan Franklin, the longtime publisher at Jonathan Cape, talks with the Observer about the house's star-studded list, jumping on the graphic novel bandwagon, and the inevitable death of the long lunch.

And finally, talk about a crime with a sugar high. 

Sunday Smatterings With Extra Sugar

Oline Cogdill looks at Bob Morris's new mystery novel BAJA FLORIDA for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

The G&M's Margaret Cannon has her say on crime fiction by Philip Kerr, Ian Weir, John McFetridge, Robert B. Parker, Gwendolyn Southin and Phyllis Smallman.

Also in the Globe & Mail, William Deverell delineates between the mystery and thriller elements of Linwood Barclay's NEVER LOOK AWAY. 

Adam Woog raves about Laurie King's new Holmes and Russell mystery THE GOD OF THE HIVE in the Seattle Times.

Marcel Berlins examines recent crime and thriller fare by Jo Nesbo, Camilla Lackberg and Margie Orford.

Linda Fairstein gives a guided tour of New York - and the locations of her newest crime novel HELL GATE - to the New York Daily News.

John Le Carre reveals some of the real-life inspiration for his spy fiction to the Sunday Times.

Are gumshoes making a Hollywood comeback? Variety seems to think so, what with the spate of news on film adaptations of books by Harlan Coben, Patricia Cornwell and Janet Evanovich. (Let's add Don Winslow to that list, too.)

Ellery Queen makes its Readers Choice Award selections.

The WSJ Q&As with Sam Lipsyte on THE ASK, writing comedy and why he's "never going to write THE DA VINCI CODE" (though if he did, it would be wonderfully strange...) Lipsyte also lunches with his former editor Gerry Howard, who writes it all up for The Daily Beast.

And finally, armed robbery. At a high-stakes poker tournament. On Live TV.