Category Archives: books

On Mud Rains & Wicked Windstorms: Crazy Weather in the Mountains as Backdrop for "The Bird Saviors"

Posted on May 28, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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"The Bird Saviors" Wins the Green Book Festival Prize in Fiction

Posted on May 26, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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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"

Posted on May 24, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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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

Posted on May 18, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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James Hansen Rants on Obama, and E.O. Wilson Gets Reviewed in the NY Times

Posted on May 14, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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On Alex Prudhomme's "The Ripple Effect," Plus My Very Own Drinking Problem

Posted on May 11, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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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

Posted on April 23, 2012 by williamjcobb

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 →

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James Cameron's Metaphor of Climate Change as the 21st Century Iceberg to Our Big Oil Titanic, Plus a Shout-out to E.O. Wilson's new book "The Social Conquest of Earth" and the Coen Brothers classic "Barton Fink"

Posted on April 21, 2012 by williamjcobb

So I’m not exactly a huge fan of James Cameron films, full of over-the-top razzle-dazzle, some great images (such as the Titanic sinking, rising into the air and all the unfortunate passengers plummeting into the water) but enough bad melodrama … Continue reading →

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The Birds Are Dying: Or in the National Wildlife Refuge, It Looks Like We Need "The Bird Saviors"

Posted on April 11, 2012 by williamjcobb

So more depressing news in the climate change/Western drought world. It seems that persistent drought conditions are drying up wildlife refuges in California, reported here. My new novel, due out June 21st, is titled The Bird Saviors, and one of … Continue reading →

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