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Posts Tagged English

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July 19, 2021 by Simon Sweetman

In Praise of Selima Hill

Look at this poem by Selima Hill. I didn’t so much read it as feel runover by it. It stalked me from the page. It lured me. And I just kept staring at it and re-reading it. I shared it on my pages. And people commented. They felt seen. And heard. They were floored. They […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged English, https://linktr.ee/Simonsweetman, In Praise Of, In Praise of Selima Hill, Lydia Davis, Poem, Poems, Poet, Poetry, Praise, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron, Writer, Writing, You Either Love A Person Or You Don't ·

Archive

May 6, 2021 by Simon Sweetman

Olivia Jean & April March: Palladium (ep)

Olivia Jean & April March Palladium (ep) Third Man Records I haven’t loved everything Jack White has done but I have always been in support of the aesthetic and business model of his Third Man Records – classic, old-fashioned record-making for people that love music. Novelty jukebox singles, quirky fan projects and an overall quality-control […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged A-side, Album Review, April March, B-side, English, EP, French, Jack White, Olivia Jean, Olivia Jean & April March, Olivia Jean & April March: Palladium (ep), Palladium, Palladium (ep), Record, Split 7", Third Man, Third Man Records, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

Archive

December 11, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 190 David Brent

I watched the David Brent: Life on the Road movie the other day. It was alright – I like Ricky Gervais a lot though the film broke no new ground and just delivered up more of The Office but in a different context. In the picture David Brent (now a travelling salesman) puts together a […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged #190, Art, Bands, Comedy, David Brent, David Brent of Wellington, David Brent: Life on the Road, English, Film, Ghost, Ghost Stories, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Jon Mcleary, Music, Painting, Ricky Gervais, Songs, Songwriting, Spinal Tap, Spines, The Ghost of Electricity, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 190, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 190 David Brent, The Office, The Spines, This Is Spinal Tap, TV, UK, War Stories, Wellingtpn, Wgtn, Writing ·

Archive

August 24, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Poem: Broken. English

He had pulled himself up by his boot straps and with just the one wing – never considering the left (or what was left) only sure that he was right (or ‘correct’). This bird had flown all along and only on one wing. No help at all. Those pesky boot straps at least they worked […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Broken, Broken English, English, Poem, Poem: Broken. English ·

Archive

July 23, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 526

Ken Colyer’s Jazzmen, Spirituals Volume 1 (1974) I had heard of this guy – Ken Colyer – but I hadn’t really heard him…a British jazzer who dedicated his life to recreating/representing the fabulous music of New Orleans. His band (his Jazzmen) would also play skiffle pieces in and around the jazz or turn trad-jazz over […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged $1, 1974, British, Charity Shop, Darkness on the Delta, English, Jazz, Jazzmen, JOY, Ken Colyer, Ken Colyer’s Jazzmen, LP, New Orleans, Record, Skiffle, Spiritual, Spirituals, Spirituals Volume 1, The Vinyl Countdown # 526, Vinyl ·

Archive

May 8, 2015 by Simon Sweetman

Haruki Murakami: The Strange Library

The Strange Library Haruki Murakami Knopf Originally published in Japan in 2008 here we have the first English translation of Murakami’s novella. The Strange Library has been translated from Japanese by Ted Goossen and is supported by wonderful illustrations and design of Chip Kidd, but the real magic is in this creepy, intriguing tale – […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Book, Book Review, Chip Kidd, English, Fiction, Haruki Murakami, Japan, Japanese, Kafka, Neil Gaiman, Novella, Ted Goossen, The Strange Library, Translation, Writing ·

Archive

August 8, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

Naoki Higashida: The Reason I Jump

The Reason I Jump: One Boy’s Voice From The Silence of Autism Naoki Higashida (translated by LA Yoshida, introduced by David Mitchell) Random House Naoki Higashida wrote this book when he was 13. It’s his meditation on his life – he suffers from autism, though to say he suffers is to play into the stereotypes […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Book Review, English, Japan, LA Yoshida, Naoki Higashida, Random House, The Reason I Jump, Translated ·

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