Michael Dirda
Los Angeles
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Articles by Michael Dirda
‘Vampire Tales’ Review: Bad Blood
From Lord Ruthven to Edward Cullen, vampires of print and film have long been ascribed Byronic glamour and charisma. As a title, “Vampire Tales” is slightly misleading. Only in this anthology’s substantial introduction do we learn that the stories and poems chosen by Nick Groom for this red brick of a book were all published before 1897, the year that Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” appeared.
Is Moby-Dick the Greatest American Novel?
Michael Dirda on the Alluring Ambiguity of Melville’s Quintessentially American Masterpiece Near the beginning of his long narrative poem “Letter to Lord Byron,” W. H.
‘Love and Death in the American Novel’ Review: A Critic Thunders
In the middle decades of the 20th century, Leslie Fiedler (1917-2003), a professor of English at the University of Montana and later at the State University of New York at Buffalo, prowled our cultural landscape as the wild man of American studies, boldly going where no scholar had gone before.
Dantès’s Inferno | Michael Dirda
More than half a century ago, on a sunny and breezy afternoon, I took the excursion boat from the Vieux Port in Marseille out to the small island that serves as the bare and rocky home of the forbidding Château d’If. I remember marveling that I should be about to visit the prison where Edmond Dantès had been incarcerated for fourteen years before seizing a dangerous opportunity to escape, wrapped in a sack as a dead man, then cast into the waters of the Mediterranean.
Talking It Out
On any given day at UCLA, the hum of conversation fills classrooms, residence halls, office corridors. But in an era when public discourse is often fractured (that’s putting it nicely), true dialogue — the kind that really builds understanding rather than foments division — has become harder and harder to find. Enter UCLA’s new Campus Community Conversations series, part of UCLA Connects, a campuswide effort to strengthen the bonds that unite the Bruin community.
The life of a playboy publisher who shaped 20th-century literature
The life of a playboy publisher who shaped 20th-century literature (washingtonpost.com) The life of a playboy publisher who shaped 20th-century literature By Michael Dirda 2026010914011900 As co-founder of Random House, Bennett Cerf published works by many of the biggest names in 20th-century fiction and nonfiction. But he was more than just a shrewd and immensely successful businessman.
Panoply of the Weird | Michael Dirda
Back in the early 1930s Gilbert Seldes—a literary critic and early champion of popular culture—was asked to contribute an introduction to a volume of stories by Fitz-James O’Brien, now often regarded as the most original American writer of supernatural fiction between Edgar Allan Poe and Ambrose Bierce. At first Seldes declined, confessing that he’d never read anything by the man.
A critic’s pick of unexpected mysteries, ghost tales and adventure novels
A critic’s pick of unexpected mysteries, ghost tales and adventure novels (washingtonpost.com) A critic’s pick of unexpected mysteries, ghost tales and adventure novels By Michael Dirda 2025121013000000 As the holiday season gets underway, it grows harder to put off the annual nightmare of shopping for presents. Having felt your pain myself, let me offer a time-tested remedy: Just buy books. It's easy.
A classic Greek history puts our current turmoil in context
A classic Greek history puts our current turmoil in context (washingtonpost.com) A classic Greek history puts our current turmoil in context By Michael Dirda 2025111315300000 I had thought that reading Robin Waterfield's new translation of Thucydides' "History of the Peloponnesian War" might offer some understanding, even some consolation, in these times of domestic political upheaval and brutal conflict around the world. I was both right and wrong.
Philip Pullman’s imaginary world has become more like our real one
Philip Pullman’s imaginary world has become more like our real one (washingtonpost.com) Philip Pullman’s imaginary world has become more like our real one By Michael Dirda 2025103112000000 If there's one cliché that even the most fresh-faced reviewer knows to avoid, it's this old chestnut: "Once I started" — insert book title here — "I couldn't put it down." Nonetheless, setting aside meals, bathroom breaks and a few nights' sleep, it's an accurate description of this grizzled reviewer's...
A Canticle for Leibowitz
Illustrated by Elliot Lang Introduced By Michael Dirda Walter M. Miller Jr’s A Canticle for Leibowitz is a post-apocalyptic masterpiece of science fiction. Featuring Elliot Lang’s evocative, medieval artwork and an introduction by Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Dirda, this beautifully produced Folio brings new depth to one of the genre’s most enduring classics.
What makes a desert island book? Dozens of writers have some thoughts.
What makes a desert island book? Dozens of writers have some thoughts. (washingtonpost.com) What makes a desert island book? Dozens of writers have some thoughts. By Michael Dirda 2025090511000000 Almost exactly 10 years ago, I received a small package from London containing a book titled "The Pleasure of Reading," edited by the eminent biographer Antonia Fraser, with a preface by Victoria Gray, the widow of playwright Simon Gray.
At 50, ‘Tuck Everlasting’ has withstood the test of time
At 50, ‘Tuck Everlasting’ has withstood the test of time (washingtonpost.com) At 50, ‘Tuck Everlasting’ has withstood the test of time By Michael Dirda 2025082313000000 Natalie Babbitt's "Tuck Everlasting" isn't a long book. Its just-published 50th-anniversary edition runs well under 200 pages, and a dozen of these are devoted to an introduction by novelist Gabrielle Zevin, a short memoir by Babbitt's daughter, Lucy, and an appendix reproducing some of the book's working notes.
What are the best adventure novels? Let’s add a hidden gem to the list.
What are the best adventure novels? Let’s add a hidden gem to the list. (washingtonpost.com) What are the best adventure novels? Let’s add a hidden gem to the list. By Michael Dirda 2025073015000000 What are the greatest adventure novels ever written? By "adventure" I don't mean "exciting" — nearly all fiction should be exciting in some way — but rather stories that emphasize action, danger and heroism.
Book bans don’t work. As a kid, I proved it.
Book bans don’t work. As a kid, I proved it. (washingtonpost.com) Book bans don’t work. As a kid, I proved it. Trying to control what kids read is a fool’s errand. Like Comstockery and Prohibition, it aims to make human beings into little saints. Ain’t never gonna happen. By Michael Dirda 2025071211300000 When I was 6 years old, my father took me to a small branch library in my hometown of Lorain, Ohio.
His biography of James Joyce was a masterpiece. Now he gets his due.
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His biography of James Joyce was a masterpiece. Now he gets his due.
His biography of James Joyce was a masterpiece. Now he gets his due. (washingtonpost.com) His biography of James Joyce was a masterpiece. Now he gets his due.
Todo lo que nos equivocamos sobre Mark Twain
Últimas NoticiasPolíticaEconomíaDólar hoyDeportesSociedadPoliciales Se dice que cuando Guerra y paz estaba terminado y a punto de publicarse, Tolstoi miró el enorme libro y de repente exclamó: “¡La regata de yates! Se me olvidó poner la regata de yates!“. Con 1.174 páginas, Mark Twain, de Ron Chernow tiene esencialmente la misma extensión que Guerra y paz, pero aparentemente no se ha pasado nada por alto ni se ha omitido nada.
O que não compreendemos sobre Mark Twain? Novo livro mostra como biografias podem ser perigosas
Diz-se que, quando Guerra e Paz estava concluído e prestes a ser publicado, Tolstóiolhou para aquele livro enorme e de repente exclamou: “A regata! Esqueci de falar da regata!” Com 1.174 páginas, Mark Twain, de Ron Chernow, tem mais ou menos o mesmo tamanho de Guerra e Paz, mas parece que nada foi esquecido nem deixado de fora.
Book Review: ‘Hamilton’ biographer Ron Chernow probes Mark Twain’s dark side
”Mark Twain,” By Ron Chernow. Publisher: Penguin, 1,174 pages. $45. It’s said that when “War and Peace” was finished and about to be published, Tolstoy looked at the huge book and suddenly exclaimed, “The yacht race! I forgot to put in the yacht race!” At 1,174 pages, Ron Chernow’s “Mark Twain” is essentially the same length as “War and Peace,” but seemingly nothing has been overlooked or left out.
What we get wrong about Mark Twain
What we get wrong about Mark Twain (washingtonpost.com) What we get wrong about Mark Twain By Michael Dirda 2025051512000000 It's said that when "War and Peace" was finished and about to be published, Tolstoy looked at the huge book and suddenly exclaimed, "The yacht race! I forgot to put in the yacht race!" At 1,174 pages, Ron Chernow's "Mark Twain" is essentially the same length as "War and Peace," but seemingly nothing has been overlooked or left out.
Disillusioned by politics, I read these books to get out of my slump
Disillusioned by politics, I read these books to get out of my slump (washingtonpost.com) Disillusioned by politics, I read these books to get out of my slump By Michael Dirda 2025050816000000 For the first six weeks after Jan. 20, I didn't read a book. I moped instead.
The Chronicler of Unhappiness | Michael Dirda
Ford Madox Ford’s 1915 novel, The Good Soldier, opens with one of the most arresting first sentences in twentieth-century fiction: “This is the saddest story I have ever heard.” The paragraph that follows, however, almost immediately undercuts it with a series of irresolute, contradictory statements: We had known the Ashburnhams for nine seasons of the town of Nauheim with an extreme intimacy—or rather, with an acquaintance as loose and easy and yet as close as a good glove’s with your hand.
What's surprising - and familiar - in Maurice Sendak's newly discovered book
As an author and artist, Maurice Sendak enriched the world with two of our most beloved picture books, “Where the Wild Things Are” (1963) and “In the Night Kitchen” (1970). Yet Sendak’s creative energy also spilled over into more commercial projects, and he often illustrated the work of others, usually favorite writers.
What reading about dead people tells us about life
With the possible exceptions of pickleball and gossip, the habitual reading of obituaries may be the favorite sport of older people. After a certain age, we begin to wonder how others have spent their time in what Melville, in “Moby-Dick,” summed up as “this strange mixed affair we call life.” Did they, as Melville went on to say, feel “this whole universe [to be] a vast practical joke” at nobody’s expense but their own? Were they true to the dreams of youth?
Column | What reading about dead people tells us about life
With the possible exceptions of pickleball and gossip, the habitual reading of obituaries may be the favorite sport of older people. After a certain age, we begin to wonder how others have spent their time in what Melville, in “Moby-Dick,” summed up as “this strange mixed affair we call life.” Did they, as Melville went on to say, feel “this whole universe [to be] a vast practical joke” at nobody’s expense but their own? Were they true to the dreams of youth?
El lado oscuro del verdadero Cid Campeador, todo un forajido
Casi todas las naciones tienen su epopeya nacional, que suele ser el relato de las hazañas marciales de un héroe guerrero. Por ejemplo, en Inglaterra está Beowulf; en Francia, La canción de Roldán; en Alemania, Los nibelungos; en Irán, El Shahnameh. En la mayoría de los casos, el héroe exhibe cualidades sobrehumanas y virtudes distintivas que los oyentes o lectores del poema deben admirar y emular: valor, fuerza, lealtad, autocontrol y, a veces, sabiduría.
In praise of three ‘unimportant’ books
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These mystery novels are so clever they deserve a second read
Over the years, I’ve read plenty of ingenious mystery novels twice, but John Dickson Carr’s “The Three Coffins” is among the very few I’ve enjoyed three times. This fall, Penzler Publishers has reprinted this greatest of locked-room whodunits as an American Mystery Classic, where it joins a diverse series that includes - to mention only the most recent offerings - Mary Roberts Rinehart’s “The Door,” Dorothy B.
Want to read something different? A play’s the thing
In the evening, with two hours till bedtime, you settle down to read ... what? It might be a novel, a best-selling work of nonfiction or even - bless you! - a collection of poems. But it almost certainly won't be a play. Why is that?
These mystery novels are so clever they deserve a second read
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Está desanimado? Eu também, mas aí me lembrei de que os livros podem ajudar
Este outono [no hemisfério norte] vem apresentando o melhor clima de D.C.: temperaturas na casa dos 20 graus, dias e dias de céu azul e ar fresco, tardes agradáveis para passear nos parques ou fazer caminhadas ao longo do Potomac e no Rock Creek Park. De modo geral, Deus não poderia ter feito uma preparação melhor para meu aniversário em 6 de novembro. Mas passei a maior parte do dia num desânimo silencioso, pensando no futuro deste país e do mundo.
Feeling despondent? So am I. Then I remembered, books can help.
This fall has showcased D.C. weather at its very best – temperatures in the 70s, day after day of luminous blue skies and dry, crisp air, lovely afternoons for strolling in parks or hiking along the Potomac and in Rock Creek Park. Overall, God couldn’t have ordered a better lead-up to my birthday on Nov. 6. As it turned out, though, I spent most of that day in quiet despondency, thinking about the future of this country and the world.
Feeling despondent? So am I. Then I remembered, books can help.
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Feeling despondent? So am I. Then I remembered, books can help.
This fall has showcased D.C. weather at its very best — temperatures in the 70s, day after day of luminous blue skies and dry, crisp air, lovely afternoons for strolling in parks or hiking along the Potomac and in Rock Creek Park. Overall, God couldn’t have ordered a better lead-up to my birthday on Nov. 6. As it turned out, though, I spent most of that day in quiet despondency, thinking about the future of this country and the world.
The 19th-century church sex scandal that changed our view of privacy
The scandal that would lead to one of the most sensational trials in American history began quietly: “On the night of July 3, 1870, Elizabeth Richards Tilton, a small, dark-haired woman of thirty-five, the mother of four children, confessed to her husband, Theodore, that she had committed adultery with her pastor, the Reverend Henry Ward Beecher, who was then the foremost preacher in the land.” This is the opening sentence of “Free Love: The Story of a Great American Scandal,” by the late...
Review | The 19th-century church sex scandal that changed our view of privacy
The scandal that would lead to one of the most sensational trials in American history began quietly: “On the night of July 3, 1870, Elizabeth Richards Tilton, a small, dark-haired woman of thirty-five, the mother of four children, confessed to her husband, Theodore, that she had committed adultery with her pastor, the Reverend Henry Ward Beecher, who was then the foremost preacher in the land.”
Review | The best spooky tales to read this season
Each year as Halloween approaches, I grow nostalgic for the spooky anthologies that first introduced me to “scary stories.” I recall, with particular fondness, “Haunted Houseful,” “Ghostly Gallery” and “Witches’ Brew,” all aimed at younger readers and (supposedly) edited by that master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. Some of the stories were lighthearted, such as “Jimmy Takes Vanishing Lessons,” by Walter R.
En un viaje literario por Noruega, prefiero a Ibsen antes que a Knausgaard
“Vivir es luchar contra los trolls”. Cuando escribió esto, o más bien su equivalente en noruego, el dramaturgo Henrik Ibsenno previó a los operativos de desinformación. Los verdaderos trolls, bajos, estúpidos y maliciosos, eran abundantes en el folclore de Noruega y podían servir como una representación conveniente de todo lo que uno odiaba o temía. En la casa de Ibsen, ahora un museo en Oslo, se pueden comprar camisetas y postales adornadas con esta flexible frase.
Review | There’s more to the Brothers Grimm than princesses and witches
Review by Michael Dirda October 17, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. EDT On any list of the world’s most translated books, you are likely to find the Bible, “The Communist Manifesto” — and a collection of stories featuring witches, talking animals, goose girls and ogres, as well as a fish that grants wishes and a frog that turns into a handsome young man. Sound familiar? Here’s how its first story begins: “Once upon a time, when wishes still came true, there lived a king who had beautiful daughters.
The surprising history of the humble notebook
Once upon a time, in a bygone era almost past recall, there were no cellphones, laptops or desk computers. In their stead people of all ages relied on various forms of bound paper to organize their lives. Back then, young children would agonize over just the right color for the cover of their school notebook. Older students might tote around three-ring binders and argue over the merits of wide-ruled vs. college-ruled pages.
On a Norwegian literary journey, I chose Ibsen over Knausgaard
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Discovering the depths of Norwegian literature with Ibsen and Hamsun
A 19th-century portrait of Henrik Ibsen, a Norwegian playwright, theater director and poet. (Universal Images Group/Getty Images) By Michael Dirda October 11, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. EDT “To live is to war with trolls.” When he wrote this, or rather its equivalent in Norwegian, the playwright Henrik Ibsen didn’t foresee Russian disinformation operatives.
La sorprendente historia del humilde cuaderno
Últimas NoticiasPolíticaEconomíaDólar hoyDeportesSociedadPolicialesNewsletters Érase una vez, en una época casi olvidada, en la que no había teléfonos móviles, ordenadores portátiles ni ordenadores de sobremesa. En su lugar, personas de todas las edades utilizaban distintos tipos de papel encuadernado para organizar sus vidas. Por aquel entonces, los niños pequeños se peleaban por elegir el color adecuado para la portada de su cuaderno escolar.
The surprising history of the humble notebook
The surprising history of the humble notebook (washingtonpost.com) The surprising history of the humble notebook By Michael Dirda 2024100412005000 Once upon a time, in a bygone era almost past recall, there were no cellphones, laptops or desk computers. In their stead people of all ages relied on various forms of bound paper to organize their lives. Back then, young children would agonize over just the right color for the cover of their school notebook.
Review | Richard Flanagan’s brilliant ‘Question 7’ defies categorization
Richard Flanagan. (PRH Australia) Review by Michael Dirda September 11, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. EDT Ten years ago, Richard Flanagan won the Man Booker Prize for his novel “The Narrow Road to the Deep North,” which focused on the Australian World War II prisoners of war who helped build what came to be known as the Thailand-Burma Death Railway.
Sherlock Holmes, again!
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2 new mystery novels for fans of Sherlock Holmes
Basil Rathbone in the 1939 film "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes." (Everett/Shutterstock) Review by Michael Dirda August 30, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. EDT Sherlock Holmes — again! There are two principal ways to write a Sherlock Holmes pastiche. That is, a story or novel true to the spirit of Arthur Conan Doyle, set in the late Victorian and Edwardian era, and usually featuring Dr. Watson as the narrator.
Analysis | What is a Snark? For Lewis Carroll, a whimsical creature we’ll never know.
“The Crew Was Complete.” From “The Hunting of the Snark” by Lewis Carroll. (Print Collector/Getty Images) Analysis by Michael Dirda August 22, 2024 at 12:00 p.m. EDT Just recently, my 7-year-old grandson, Ryan, thoughtfully announced, “It’s hard to spend a day without smiling.” That’s particularly true for any day in which one reads certain works by the Oxford mathematician Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, better known by his pen name, Lewis Carroll.
Review | Queen Camilla’s book club pick, ‘Mapp and Lucia,' is a delight
Review by Michael Dirda August 16, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. EDT Montessori schools famously dubbed one of their signature programs “The Royal Road to Reading.” But who knew that actual royals read books just like you and me? Recently, Britain’s Queen Camilla has been sharing some of her favorite fiction and nonfiction through an online book club and charity, “The Queen’s Reading Room.” This summer she enthused about “Mapp and Lucia,” one of the light comic masterpieces by the remarkable E.F. Benson.
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