Monday's Body of Work

The Doctor Is In

Doctor Samuel Johnson, being one of history’s most storied critics, has endured his own share of criticism. Once we even heard the claim that Johnson’s work is nothing more than antiquated flatulence. A bold claim indeed. We’re more inclined to let Johnson’s work stand as it is and permit the reader the chance to decide. One of today’s preeminent critics, Harold Bloom, reviews in the NY Times the influence of Johnson’s legacy. Elsewhere, a jetsetting debut of poems is reviewed in Open Letters Monthly, Kiran Desai’s award-winning body of work is reconsidered, and the Boston Review investigates the ongoing struggle between immigrants and the American way of life. Further down the road, the Chronicle describes Paul Auster as a spooky, chilly writer, while other well-known authors weigh in on what it takes to write a great novel. Finally, it’s good old Alan Bennett, waxing poetic about how he turned W.H. Auden into a character in one of his plays. We await history’s judgment. — Kevin Murphy

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