literature on Vice

Please Start Banning Books Again

I kind of miss the idea of cultural lines that one can’t step over. One of my most memorable high school experiences was getting a permission slip signed by my parents so I could listen to an audiotape of Allen Ginsberg reading “America.” Full story

A JPEG Interview with Douglas Coupland

Author Douglas Coupland is pretty tired of email interviews, and who can blame him? To keep things fresh, Nadja Sayej interviewed him with JPEGs of handwritten questions, and Douglas responded in kind. Full story

Seven Sonnets Read by Webcam Models

Author, poet, and porn enthusiast John Reed got several webcam models to read his sonnets in the outfits and settings in which they’re usually stripping and titillating their viewers. These short videos put both the poems and the webcam models in new contexts—beyond that, they’re… Full story

One Hundred Literary Rumors

I don’t know what you’ve heard, but I’ve heard a lot of shit. People whispering in hallways and Gmail chatting about all kinds of dark secrets. People up in parties with their coats and hair all looking nice and their mouths just full of you wouldn’t even want to know. I’ll tell… Full story

Scott McClanahan’s Animal Magnetism

I think of Scott McClanahan as a kind of reauthenticated version of everything that’s good about Southern writing. I’ve seen him silence a room at least five different times now with just the words that came out of his mouth. Scott just released his first full-length book of nonf… Full story

Anne of Green Gables Is Now Totally Boneable

Anne of Green Gables used to be a lovably homely redheaded orphan. Which is why the story's new book jacket has been causing a stir among fans. Based on the new cover, I would guess that 'Anne of Green Gables' is the sultry tale of a romp in the barn with the farmer's daughter. Full story

He’s Not Dead Yet? Life with Gene Gregorits

Gene Gregorits is the greatest, truest writer you never heard of, unless you read the news right after he cut off his earlobe and ate it. Twice. How that hurricane of a man ever managed to sit still long enough to complete eight books, including the three-volume “disintegration c… Full story

All the Books I Read in 2012

I hate end-of-the-year best-of lists. They are short-sighted and usually hive-mindish. They feel counter-productive or something, like they are trying to trick you. Instead, here’s a list of everything I read this year, 135 books, in order. Full story

Solo Piano Music

Before reading the official report, the investigator announced his intention to use every tool at his disposal to protect Fateh. He kicked out everyone who had gathered—the journalists, political activists, civil-society organizations, and curious onlookers—and forbade them from… Full story

Prelude to 'Solo Piano Music'

Why the World Should Read Syria’s Fawwaz Haddad

Like much of the literary elite in Syria, Fawwaz Haddad has watched his country disintegrate over the past 20 months. His stories explore the limits placed on Syrian society, zig-zagging between high-minded principles and the dirty business of everyday life. Full story