Matt Reimann
Reader, specializing in Twentieth Century and contemporary fiction. Committed to spreading an infectious passion for literature, language, and stories.

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Why Donald Hall Only Gets Wiser with Age

By Matt Reimann. Sep 20, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Poetry, Pulitzer Prize

A few years ago, writer and poet Donald Hall was awarded the National Medal of Arts for his lifetime of work. Aside from the respectful tribute, some in the media gawked at just how old the octogenarian writer looked. He came to the platform with bushy eyebrows, an unkempt beard, and stood in a few unflattering snapshots beside President Obama. He was subject to such ridicule as the nickname “yeti,” as well as a “photo caption contest” in the comments below. All this for a former poet laureate of the United States.

     
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VLOG: Seven Videos On the Art of Making Books By Hand

By Matt Reimann. Sep 13, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Fine Press, Book History, Book Making, Book Care

Some historians consider the printing press the most important invention of the first millennium. Still, the march of technology has since made the innovative device obsolete. Spreading the written word is easier and cheaper than ever before. And it is for this natural and understandable reason we have grown distant from the remarkable labor and beauty involved in printing by hand.

     
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Malcolm Bradbury's Personal and Literary Legacy

By Matt Reimann. Sep 7, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Literature, Modern First Editions

When Sir Malcolm Bradbury died in 2000, it seemed the entirety of London literary culture mourned. Here was a man who had written a trove of delightful novels, taught countless students, and advocated tirelessly for the advancement of the written word. His death sparked something different from the usual public grieving process. Where many authors are lamented because there will be no more books, this man was mourned because there would be no more Bradbury.

     
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Tortilla Flat: A Little Book and a Big Controversy

By Matt Reimann. Sep 3, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Legendary Authors, American Literature

On May 28, 1935, the world saw the release of Tortilla Flat. It would become John Steinbeck’s first truly successful book, heralding the arrival of a truly distinguished American voice. Steinbeck later went on to write more ambitious novels like East of Eden and The Grapes of Wrath, ultimately leading the author to a Nobel Prize in Literature. But before all that pomp and regard, there was a slim, comic novel about jolly laborers passing time in California.

     
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Six Interesting Facts About Edgar Rice Burroughs, the Author of Tarzan

By Matt Reimann. Sep 1, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Legendary Authors, Modern First Editions

Recently, popular culture saw Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan resurrected once again for the silver screen. But The Legend of Tarzan, a blockbuster treatment of the much-cinematized hero, was received overall to mild acclaim. The problem seemed for both critics and audiences that the story itself was old. And in this moment, it pays to remember the time, place, and person the story came from.

     
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Kingsley and Martin Amis' Family Rivalry

By Matt Reimann. Aug 25, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Literature, Modern First Editions

There’s hardly a more memorable father-son duo in modern literature than Kingsley and Martin Amis. “Duo,” though, may not be the most accurate term. The pair never worked together, nor did they agree as far as art was concerned. In fact, each man was distinct in temperament and personality, writing novels unique to his own aims and tastes. Differ as they may, both have offered a powerful portraits of their times, with rich narrative voices to bring their visions to life.

     
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Why We Can Stop Reading Charles Bukowski

By Matt Reimann. Aug 16, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Poetry, American Literature

Sometimes, the persona of the writer outsizes the body of writing itself. Few examples of this are clearer than that set by poet and novelist Charles Bukowski. He committed to his pages the environment he knew bestthat of lowlifes, the forgotten, and the destitute. This sort of lifewith all its modest adventures to be found in saloons, motels, booze, and sexhas captivated the adolescent mind for years. And these readers are the chief reason Bukowski is kept alive at all.

     
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Six Facts About Henry David Thoreau's Walden

By Matt Reimann. Aug 9, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Legendary Authors, American Literature

On August 9, 1854, Henry David Thoreau published his book, Walden; or, Life in the Woods. It narrateswith an ample serving of artistic interventionits author’s experiment to live divorced from society, in an effort to uncover better ways of living. “I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life,” he writes in a manifesto-like paragraph of Walden, “to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms.”

     
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What to Read for the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games

By Matt Reimann. Aug 5, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: History

Tonight, as soon as the torch is lit at the Rio Summer Olympics, the world will have its eyes fixed on television screens across the globe. Watching the events of the Games has been an international tradition since we've had TVs in our homes. Yet what’s less common is to get into the Olympics spirit not by watching, but by reading. They may not be as immediate as a live stream broadcast of the high-dive, but good Olympics books can do you a lot of good.

     
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George Bernard Shaw: The Art of Quotation

By Matt Reimann. Jul 26, 2016. 9:00 AM.

Topics: Nobel Prize Winners, Drama

Good booze, beautiful scenery, and wit are the very things Ireland is perhaps known best for. The country’s long history of strife and oppression has given its people a talent for insight and humor. An analysis of the sharpest wits in the English language reveal a lopsided representation of Ireland, with a stacked roster represented by the likes of Swift, Sterne, Wilde, and Behan. And strong as they may be, such a list would be incomplete without the inclusion of playwright and Nobel Prize-winner George Bernard Shaw.

     
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How can I identify a first edition? Where do I learn about caring for books? How should I start collecting? Hear from librarians about amazing collections, learn about historic bindings or printing techniques, get to know other collectors. Whether you are just starting or looking for expert advice, chances are, you'll find something of interest on blogis librorum.

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