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Persian Locks: 1500 Years of Iranian Padlocks by Parviz Tanavoli Book Review

Persian Locks: 1500 Years of Iranian Padlocks by Parviz Tanavoli [Amazon link] is an absolutely beautiful volume detailing the lock-making traditions of Iran. I wouldn’t hesitate to put this on my coffee table. The illustrations of lock mechanisms within this book are solidly in the tradition of Roger Jean

Science Fiction and Science Fantasy

In my editorial line at With Both Hands, I’ve started to shy away from bookstore genre labels, as I have come to think that these marketing tools cramp the mind of both the reader and the writer. However, lots of people still use these terms, and in general they

The Cockroach: Disgusting Critters by Elise Gravel Book Review

The Cockroach: Disgusting Critters by Elise Gravel [Amazon link] is a cutesy science fact book done in a picture book style. It is brief, thankfully. I prefer the kind of science books I give my kids to have a little more substance to them. This book is directed at early

Linkfest 2021-08-06: Twilight of Democracy

The Long View: The Twilight of Democracy John J. Reilly’s 1997 review of Patrick E. Kennon’s The Twilight of Democracy is a fascinating read twenty four years later. Some version of Kennon’s point of view is still hugely important in how the United States is run, and

The Long View 2008-09-20: Parastatals

This is another spectacular essay from John J. Reilly. Here, he uses the term of art “parastatal enterprise” to describe the parts of the economy that are widely seen, by opponents and proponents alike, as market enterprises, but which are in fact extensions of the state and its policies. There

The Long View 2008-09-07: Some Notes on the American Political Major-Party Conventions of 2008

John J. Reilly gives us some solid grounding here in the foundations of cyclical theories of history, and also provides his assessment of why neither American party has been able to create a durable governing order akin to the New Deal. This essay is highly recommended. Some Notes on the

Duel Visions by Misha Burnett and Louise Sorensen Book Review

Misha Burnett and Louise Sorensen team up to create a collection of strange and horrifying short stories, Duel Visions. [Amazon link] The two authors alternate contributions to this slim volume of the weird and macabre. As a short story collection, I’ll do each story individually, then give my impressions