Editors of The Believer

I'm going to call this "The Mind-Blowing Issue" because every article in here blew my mind in some way. Most notably: "Postmodernism as Liberty Valance" was so damn smart it blew my mind; "How to Explore Like a Real Victorian Adventurer" was so fun and insightful it blew my mind; and "Meat and Light" was so weird and confusing that it finished the job and made my mind actually blow right out of my head. (To be fair, I think the weirdness and confusion probably came from the author if the show more book(s) being discussed, and not from the author of the article itself, who was very clear and clever.) And I enjoyed Russell Quinn's centerfold "Fate of the Universe" spread was so much I want to hang it up in my bedroom like a teenager.

The interviews in this issue are the same intimate and insightful quality I've come to expect from The Believer, and I found the conversations with Steve Carell and Julian Gough both gave me plenty of ideas to chew on for days after reading them.

And of course I can't finish without saying something about my favorite column, Nick Hornby's "Stuff I've Been Reading," which took a dark--but always laugh provoking--turn this week. Don't ever leave us, Nick!

Art Issue #85 here I come! show less

A very educational issue for someone who knows very little about art except that "Oh, I like that picture over there!" The article about Frederico Vigil, "The Michelangelo of New Mexico" was absolutely fascinating, as was "The Last Man for the Job," an article about the dying art of the typesetter. As always, the interviews are second to none. I found the interview with Shuvinai Ashoona to be touching and mind-bending, the interview with David Altmejd to be enlightening and entrancing, and show more the conversation with James Franco and Carter to be a fun and bizarre trip down the rabbit hole. The section in the middle of the magazine on paper airplanes was unique for sure, but I hope the editors will forgive me if I don't actually put my hands on this hands-on exercise. show less

Not being a particular music lover, I did not expect to enjoy this as much as I did--I was very pleasantly surprised. The Believer music issue is not really about the hot bands or artists, or the current top songs; rather, it is about what music makes us feel, how it affects our actions--who we choose as friends, how we spend our money, how we learn, work and create. It was all stuff that I could appreciate and relate to, even though I am neither a musician or a music aficionado. The show more magazine comes with a CD of "work by contemporary composers," and it was SUCH an experience! Although I didn't *love* each of the pieces, I did love hearing each one for the first time and identifying the different sounds. My favorite artists from the CD were Sarah Kirkland Snider, Owen Pallett, Nat Evans and Bryce Dessner. I will definitely be looking up more by these composers. show less

[close] Dear Pete,
I'm thinking of reading this book, but I'm not sure if it's a good use of my time. Also, I have foot pain. What should I do?

-Foot Pain in Brisbane

Dear Foot Pain,

Let's start with the book.

The concept of this book is hilarious and maybe undersold. The idea is that people write in with their Dear-Abby-Esque questions and then receive advice. BUT that advice comes from a linup of comedians and comedy writers, probably the worst people to ask.

Because there are something show more like 30 different writers, the entries are pretty uneven. Some of the best include Amy Sedaris, Jim Gaffigan, and Marc Maron, who gives a piece of advice to a lady about talking dirty that is just about the funniest one-liner this side of...I don't know, Wayne's World II?

There's not much reason to get too specific about who was shitty, but the more meta the writers got, the less entertaining. A lof of them used the string of letters to create a second-layer comedy scenario, and that generally didn't work for me.

My advice would be to read it for free in the bookstore while nursing a chai so long that there's a milk skin on top.

As far as the foot pain goes, I would say that you should probably stop sleeping around, maybe then your foot wouldn't hurt so bad. Or maybe it wouldn't make any difference. But either way, stopping sleeping around is probably a good choice.

Best,
Pete show less