recently completed:
Lila - Marilynne Robinson. Like its companions in Robinson’s “Iowa” trilogy (Gilead and Home), Lila offers writing that is beautiful in an intense but quiet way, full of a sober wisdom, rich in empathy.
in progress and upcoming:
Denise Levertov: A Poet’s Life - Dana Greene
Harvard Composers - Howard Pollack
The Spectral Piano - Marilyn Nonken
Composition in the Digital World - Robert Raines
A Dance of Polar Opposites - George Rochberg
Stomping the Blues - Albert Murray
Having enjoyed Pollack’s book on Copland, I sought out his Harvard Composers at the Penn library. On an nearby shelf was the Raines, a recent book I had not heard about, offering a collection of interviews with contemporary composers. Would any algorithm have suggested the Raines if I searched online for the Pollack? (Amazon does not.) I haven’t seen anything online yet that can replace the peculiar serendipities of libraries.