From Bookforum, Robert P. Baird reviews Mentors, Muses & Monsters: 30 Writers on the People Who Changed Their Lives, ed. Elizabeth Benedict; and Nicole Lanctot reviews Heavy Rotation: Twenty Writers on the Albums That Changed Their Lives, ed. Peter Terzian. "Neuro lit crit" is the study of how great writing affects the hard wiring inside our heads — but can we decode the artistic impulse? A look at the 5 most disappointing film adaptations of kids’ books. Lewis Carroll's shifting reputation: Why has popular opinion of the author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland undergone such a dramatic reversal? Writing circle: Nick Mamatas can't read enough literary biographies. From Bomb, Justin McNeil reviews The Novel: an Alternative History, Beginnings to 1600 by Steven Moore: "Think of it as B.D.Q., or Before Don Quixote”. Jay Nicorvo of the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses takes the editor of Virginia Quarterly Review to task over his article on what’s killing literary fiction — the writers aren’t the problem, it’s the editors. How to Write in 700 Easy Lessons: Richard Bausch on the case against writing manuals. Lost literature, the unknown unknowns: The stories behind great writing that has lain forgotten, suppressed or invisible, are often the most fascinating. Reading War and Peace: Kevin Hartnett on the effects of great art on an ordinary life. Epic endeavors: Daniel Mendelsohn on three novel takes on Greek myth. Nero’s fiddle, Gaddafi’s fiction: Legislators are more often the unacknowledged poets of the world than vice versa. An interview with Michael Silverblatt, host of LA radio station KCRW’s Bookworm, the premier literary forum in America. Minding the memory: David Jays on how literary estates shape artists’ legacies, for good or ill.
