Book review: “The Imagined Life” by Andrew Porter Reviewed by Steven G. Kellman The decades following World War II were the golden age of the campus novel – fiction about the aspirations and agonies of college life. Kingsley Amis’s Lucky Jim, Vladimir Nabokov’s Pnin, Bernard Malamud’s A New Life, John Williams’s Stoner, and David Lodge’s Changing Places were published …
NEWS ROUNDUP, 3, 27, 2025 Here’s good news for the many fans of the late Johnny Cash and his wife and stage partner for many years, June Carter Cash: This weekend you have a chance to see: “A Man Named Cash,The Premier Tribute to the Music and Lives of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash.” The show stars vocalist Eric …
Wendy Barker: The Complete Poems. Edited by Steven G. Kellman. Foreword by Ilan Stavans. Afterword by Steven G. Kellman. LSU Press: 2025. 584 Pages. $49.95 paperback. $19. 95 Ebook. Reviewed by Bonnie Lyons When Wendy Barker died two years ago on March 11, 2023, I, Iike so many people who loved her, was devastated. Two years later, I miss her …
Book Review “Noble Fragments” The gripping story of the Antiquarian Bookseller who Broke Up a Gutenberg Bible” by Michael Visontay Reviewed by Steven G. Kellman At the entrance to exhibitions at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center in Austin, a visitor encounters the institution’s crown jewel – a complete Gutenberg Bible. One of the rarest of bibliophilic treasures, it …
The San Antonio Philharmonic’s Classics VII concert will feature Liszt’s Paino Concerto No.1 with Ukrainian pianist, Illia Ovcharenko, at the piano. Other pieces on the program are:Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy,” Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from “West Side Story” and Dukas’ “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.” The whimsical and spellbinding tale of Dukas’ “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” is a scintillating miniature masterpiece, made famous …
ART and INNOVATION in COMFORT, TX: A VISIT to MIXHAUS GALLERY By Jean Hackett Cara Hines, owner of MixHaus Gallery in Comfort, Texas – about 45 miles from San Antonio – has a vision. “I hope to set Comfort apart as a destination for the arts and creative visionaries in the spirit of Freethinkers who settled here in the …
NEWS ROUNDUP, 3/13/2025 The much anticipated “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” concert is taking place this Saturday. The concert features the famed film on a giant high-definition screen, with the San Antonio Philharmonic playing live in the theater the famous score by John Williams. (Feb. 14 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 15 at 2 p.m. at the Majestic …
By Phil Houseal Is there a place where fans of classic country music can go to hear the old tunes, dance to their favorite memories, and maybe even meet their music heroes? Yes. Here in Central Texas, they go to the Heart of Texas Country Music Festival, now in its 36th year. The name is intentional, for not only does …
Reviewed by Steven G. Kellman Karen Russell’s debut novel, Swamplandia!, the exuberant account of an alligator-wrestling theme park in southwest Florida, appeared 14 years ago. Her second novel, published now, is also imbued with a vivid sense of place, except that, instead of the author’s native Sunshine State, the setting for The Antidote is 1935 Uz, Nebraska – during …
Here’s a group we don’t hear that much about: The Olmos Ensemble, created byfour talented and experienced musicians: Eric Gratz (violin), Matthew Cohen (viola), Julian Schwartz (cello) and IlyaShterenberg (clarinet). They will perform two concerts in the upcoming days: “Music From St.Mark’s Presents Olmos Ensemble” on March 9, and “Olmos Ensemble presents Viennese Masters,” on March 10. The first concert …
