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Category Archives: books
A Bear Sighting, With a Literary Twist
So this evening as I was finishing a salmon dinner (note the subtle motif about to emerge), a bear showed up in my yard–actually he kind of shambled up. Ever the amateur shutterbug, I grabbed my camera and snapped a … Continue reading
Posted in Bears, books, Climate Change, Photography, The West, writing
Tagged Wildlife photos
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Great Review of "The Bird Saviors" in Foreword Magazine
So Foreword magazine, which specializes in Indie books, has a great review of my new novel The Bird Saviors, here, and I’ll paste it below: Summer 2012 — ForeWord Review THE BIRD SAVIORS William J. Cobb daringly dips his pen into … Continue reading
Posted in Birding, books, Climate Change, The West, writing
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John Kennedy Toole's "A Confederacy of Dunces" Finally to be Filmed, With Zach Galifianakis playing the Inimitable Ignatius Reilly
So one of the funniest American novels EVER is about to (finally) make it into a film version (in which Hollywood will no doubt muck it up, but so it goes): John Kennedy Toole’s (infamous) A Confederacy of Dunces (1980), … Continue reading
Posted in Art, books, books/film, Film, writing, Zach Galifianakis
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On Mud Rains & Wicked Windstorms: Crazy Weather in the Mountains as Backdrop for "The Bird Saviors"
So I’ve noticed the early reviews of The Bird Saviors mention the dust storms and pink snow featured prominently at the beginning of the novel. Although that might seem fantastic, actually crazy weather is common & seemingly growing ever more … Continue reading
Posted in books, Climate Change, Photography, The West, Weird Weather
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"The Bird Saviors" Wins the Green Book Festival Prize in Fiction
So I admittedly don’t know squat about what the Green Book Festival is, but my publisher entered The Bird Saviors in their contest, and it won the first prize in Fiction, described here. (Take that, Toni Morrison!) And although I … Continue reading
Posted in Birding, books, Climate Change, The West, writing
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Letter From Westcliffe, Colorado—After a Radio Interview in Denver, With a Shout-out to Richard Brautigan's biography "Jubilee Hitchhiker," Plus a Poke at Nick Reding's "Methland"
So yesterday I was in Denver for a radio interview with Irene Rawlings of the Clear Channel, who couldn’t have been nicer. It was relaxed and easy, and quick. The sound booth/studio (whatever they call that little room) reminded me … Continue reading
Posted in books, The West, writing
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On Alex Prud'homme's "The Ripple Effect": Why I Never Wanted to Read This, and Now Can't Put It Down
So I have to confess of all the environmental issues floating around out there—Climate Change, Peak Oil, Fracking hazards, Overpopulation, Resource depletion, General 21st Century Malaise (okay, I added that one)—I’ve been deliberately avoiding reading (or thinking about) the looming … Continue reading
Posted in books, Climate Change, Politics, The West, Water Crisis, writing
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James Hansen Rants on Obama, and E.O. Wilson Gets Reviewed in the NY Times
So I liked the review in the NY Times this weekend of E.O. Wilson’s The Social Conquest of Earth, which I’m still reading (it’s long), which is here. One thing I’ll note: Although I knew about and recognized his argument for … Continue reading
Posted in books, Climate Change, Education, Politics, The West, Weird Science
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On Alex Prudhomme's "The Ripple Effect," Plus My Very Own Drinking Problem
So I have a confession to make: I have a drinking problem. But no, it’s not that kind, the James Frey kind (greatly exaggerated, we later learned), the sadsack rehab kind. Like the weepy drunk on the barstool next to … Continue reading
Posted in books, books/film, Climate Change, The West
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Pete Dexter's Great Novel "The Paperboy" Now Coming Out as a Film, Starring Nicole Kidman, No Less, As a Skanky Prison Wife
So I just stumbled across this little gem of good news: Pete Dexter’s knockout novel The Paperboy (1995) has been made into a film, which is about to be shown at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival, starring Nicole Kidman, among … Continue reading
Posted in books, books/film, Film, writing
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