Against Everything: Essays | 
pickA cultural critic‘s essay collection that is titled “Against Everything” is an immediate buy for me. A truly thought provoking and boundary pushing read, with some great insights and perspectives by the Stanford professor, author and cultural critic Mark Greif. Read my full review on anushareflects.wordpress.com. Essays dwell on themes of exercise, experience, reality TV, war, and much more.
pickRead "The Meaning of Life" parts 1, 2, and 3. Quite dense in some chapters, but so worth it for a perspective and freshness you won't find anywhere else
pickSome of these essays seem way ahead of their time (the one on income redistribution written in 2004 would be super popular now with Bernie Sanders fans), but others have not aged quite as well - like he clearly does not understand the appeal of vlogging and missed how much of a phenomenon it is for teens. Overall I found the essays (and writer) grumpy but persuasive and thoughtful.
Slick burn 🔥. For context, this is from an essay called “What Was The Hipster?” The “was” might be a bit premature though...
all my holds came at once! does that happen to you too? now where to start?!?! #librarylove
pickThis was a good collection of essays but I felt some were outdated. It could be the timing, with current events as they are now, that made them seem that way:(. Overall, though, I really enjoyed the writing.
I find it easier to dip into essay collections instead of reading fiction while watching my kids' sports practices. Today I brought this to read.
Reading this one in bits and pieces whenever I'm home because Mark, a former (and beloved) professor, signed my copy and I want to keep it absolutely pristine. And the contrarian in me is so excited to dive into essays against stuff! #catsoflitsy #essaycollections
The first essay in this collection is called "Against Exercise" and it's just as good as you'd think it would be. Already sold on Mark Greif, damn. Has anybody read this whole collection??
A RAVE from the New York Times. I can't wait to read this! http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/08/28/books/review/against-everything-mark-greif....
I can't wait for Mark Greif's essay collection to come out in September. If you haven't read his brilliant n+1 essay "Against Exercise," do! His writing is smart and witty (and he's the same in person—I had the incredible privilege of taking a class with him, and later being his advisee, at Eugene Lang College). The Amazon page for the book features effusive blurbs from John Jeremiah Sullivan, Mary Karr, and Zadie Smith! ?
