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“The goal of the Deep Southern oligarchy has been consistent for over four centuries: to control and maintain a one-party state with a colonial-style economy based on large-scale agriculture and the extraction of primary resources by a compliant, poorly educated, low-wage workforce with as few labor, workplace safety, health care, and environmental regulations as possible.”
― American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America
― American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America
“There’s no material safety data sheet for astatine. If there were, it would just be the word “NO” scrawled over and over in charred blood.”
― What If? 10th Anniversary Edition: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
― What If? 10th Anniversary Edition: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
“Writing a novel— actually picking the words and filling in paragraphs— is a tremendous pain in the ass. Now that TV’s so good and the Internet is an endless forest of distraction, it’s damn near impossible. That should be taken into account when ranking the all-time greats. Somebody like Charles Dickens, for example, who had nothing better to do except eat mutton and attend public hangings, should get very little credit.”
― How I Became a Famous Novelist
― How I Became a Famous Novelist
“The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all wish it was not. But it’s a lie. I came from a country where race was not an issue; I did not think of myself as black and I only became black when I came to America. When you are black in America and you fall in love with a white person, race doesn’t matter when you’re alone together because it’s just you and your love. But the minute you step outside, race matters. But we don’t talk about it. We don’t even tell our white partners the small things that piss us off and the things we wish they understood better, because we’re worried they will say we’re overreacting, or we’re being too sensitive. And we don’t want them to say, Look how far we’ve come, just forty years ago it would have been illegal for us to even be a couple blah blah blah, because you know what we’re thinking when they say that? We’re thinking why the fuck should it ever have been illegal anyway? But we don’t say any of this stuff. We let it pile up inside our heads and when we come to nice liberal dinners like this, we say that race doesn’t matter because that’s what we’re supposed to say, to keep our nice liberal friends comfortable. It’s true. I speak from experience.”
― Americanah
― Americanah
“As a nation, we began by declaring that 'all men are created equal.' We now practically read it 'all men are created equal, except negroes.' When the Know-Nothings get control, it will read 'all men are created equal, except negroes, and foreigners, and Catholics.' When it comes to this I should prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of loving liberty – to Russia, for instance, where despotism can be taken pure, and without the base alloy of hypocrisy.”
― Lincoln Letters
― Lincoln Letters
Ask Mary Roach - Wednesday, April 10th!
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— last activity Sep 19, 2022 12:25PM
Join us on Wednesday, April 10th for a special discussion with author Mary Roach! Mary will be discussing her work, including her most recent book Gul ...more
Ask Nick Harkaway - November 12
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— last activity Nov 12, 2012 01:31AM
Nick Harkaway is the bestselling author of The Gone-Away World and Angelmaker, among other titles. We are thrilled to announce that Nick will be answe ...more
Monigle Book Recommendation Club
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— last activity Jun 14, 2016 12:58PM
These are books we've discussed at the Monigle Book Recommendation Club so far. ...more
Overdue Podcast
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— last activity Nov 08, 2021 04:26PM
A group for reading along and discussing the books featured on the Overdue Podcast. Overdue is a podcast about the books you've been meaning to read. ...more
Joel’s 2025 Year in Books
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