Books that suck you in and spin you out

In this week's newsletter: art as a souvenir, centripetal and centrifugal forces, ear and eye candy, and more...

In this week's newsletter: art as a souvenir, centripetal vs. centrifugal forces, ear and eye candy, and more... View this email in your browser Hey y'all, The day after April Fools is a good time to remember that most personal progress requires first learning to play the fool. (On that note, here's a new playlist.) Okay, let's get to it. 10 things I thought were worth sharing this week:  Some books suck you in, some books spin you out.   I'm in love with The Writer's Map: An Atlas of Imaginary Lands. I've always been a bit obsessed with maps and even started my own collection of imaginary maps way back in 2008. (If I'd have owned this book when I was doing my undergrad thesis, who knows, maybe I'd be a novelist.) The Writer's Map would pair well with Peter Turchi's book, Maps of the Imagination: The Writer as Cartographer.    I'm doing a live online chat and Q&A with Jessica Abel this week and registration is free. (I met Jessica thirteen years ago when I drew her appearance at Austin Books and Comics. I look forward to catching up.)   Art: Ray Johnson's photography, the Louvre's entire collection of 480,000 artworks, and, for Texas Highways, I wrote about another weirdo who left Texas and brought back art.   Parents: give yourself what you needed then and give your kids what they need now.   I tickles me that we have Kevin Shields's nephews to partly thank for My Bloody Valentine's return. (See: Youth Spies and Curious Elders.)    Ear candy: the new Pharaoh Sanders record is just terrific. I've also been spinning David Byrne's score for The Catherine Wheel (after watching the Twyla Moves documentary) and Molly Joyce's Breaking and Entering, which has an inspiring backstory.    Watching: I'm a bit bereft from finishing The Knick, so I watched a young Clive Owen in the neo-noir, Croupier. I also laughed like crazy at all 3 of John Mulaney's comedy specials on Netflix.    RIP author Larry McMurtry. (Lonesome Dove is one of my all-time favorite novels and one of my time capsules. His book Walter Benjamin at the Dairy Queen is also a big influence on my ideas about community and creativity in mundane retail spaces.) RIP author Beverly Cleary. RIP musical pioneer Malcolm Cicel, who, among other things, helped Stevie Wonder make his incredible run of 70s records.   Art as a souvenir, made in gratitude.  Thanks for reading. This newsletter is free, but not cheap. To show your support, you can forward it to someone who'd like it, listen to read my books, shop for some of my favorite gear (I get a cut), buy a t-shirt, or hire me to speak. If you're seeing this newsletter for the first time, you can read previous issues and subscribe here. xoxo,  Austin PS. The year is 25% over. Keep going. photo by @brownpaperpress Austin Kleon is the author of Steal Like An Artist and other books. Subscribe to this newsletter   Copyright © 2021 Austin Kleon, All rights reserved. My mailing address is: Austin Kleon 1101 W 34th St Box #102 Austin, TX 78705 Please read this before sending me snail mail! You're getting this email because you signed up for it at austinkleon.com. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. Amazon Affiliate links offset the cost of sending these missives. Support your local bookstore if you have one.