D. A. Hosek

Author: <span>D. A. Hosek</span>

Beautiful Sentences: Christine Sneed

Rejection is the relentless, powerful hazing that disables ninety-seven out of a hundred talented people. Christine Sneed, “The First Wife.”

Dewey Decimal Project: 371.782 COL The Bully, The Bullied and the Bystander

By far the best book I’ve read as I’ve worked my way through the Dewey Decimal System. Perhaps it’s because so much of what Coloroso writes echoes and is echoed by other books I’ve read on parenting, discipline and teaching, but it appears that there’s a clear consensus on how to deal with these sorts of […]

Beautiful Sentences: J. Robert Lennon

The memories this act stirred up were mostly memories of other visits to this cemetery, when her feelings had been more profound. (This is what happens, she supposes, to dramatic events: they create feelings that create other feelings, memories that give way to memories of having them. The older you get, the more life seems […]

Dewey Decimal Project: 364.15 In His Sights: A True Story of Love and Obsession

A while ago, one of my friends experienced life with an ex-boyfriend stalking her. I actually met him at one point when he came to a church picnic with my friend. I didn’t realize at the time that his presence was not entirely desired by my friend and he came across as charming and attentive towards […]

Beautiful Sentences: Marilynne Robinson

You can hate thoughts. That‘s interesting. I hate most of my thoughts. Marilynne Robinson, Home.

Dewey Decimal Project: 355.0213 JOH The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy and the End of the Republic

This was a fair amount of familiar rhetoric, and largely things that I agree with (although I’m more positive on trade than Johnson, or many on the far left, for that matter). Overall, though, perhaps because it was so familiar, I found it a bit wearisome of a read, not unlike listening to Pacifica Radio, which […]

“Bartholomew L. Bartholomew”: The Story Behind the Story

“I once held the position of Technical Lead…” this part of the story is autobiography. The rest, modulo the occasional detail that I borrowed from my years’ experience in tech, is fiction. The obvious inspiration is Melville (the short title I used for filenames and the like for the story was “Bart LB” and I […]

Beautiful Sentences: Denis Johnson

But I was afraid to make love to her without the conversations and laughter from that false universe playing in our ears, because I didn’t want to get to know her very well, and didn’t want, to be bridging any silences with our eyes. Denis Johnson, Jesus’ Son

Dewey Decimal Project: 341.69 LIC The Nazis Next Door

As I dug through the  40s at the library, I found a surprising number of books dedicated to the O. J. Simpson trial. And while I’ve heard good things about the recent documentary and miniseries about the trial, I also remember the whole circus surrounding it when it happened and I’m willing to take a pass […]