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Book Cover for: Book Reports: A Music Critic on His First Love, Which Was Reading, Robert Christgau

Book Reports: A Music Critic on His First Love, Which Was Reading

Robert Christgau

Paperback
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In this generous collection of book reviews and literary essays, legendary Village Voice rock critic Robert Christgau showcases the passion that made him a critic-his love for the written word. Many selections address music, from blackface minstrelsy to punk and hip-hop, artists from Lead Belly to Patti Smith, and fellow critics from Ellen Willis and Lester Bangs to Nelson George and Jessica Hopper. But Book Reports also teases out the popular in the Bible and 1984 as well as pornography and science fiction, and analyzes at length the cultural theory of Raymond Williams, the detective novels of Walter Mosley, the history of bohemia, and the 2008 financial crisis. It establishes Christgau as not just the Dean of American Rock Critics, but one of America's most insightful cultural critics as well.

Book Details

  • Publisher: Duke University Press
  • Publish Date: May 3rd, 2019
  • Pages: 416
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 9.00in - 6.10in - 0.90in - 1.20lb
  • EAN: 9781478000303
  • Categories: • History & Criticism - General• Books & Reading

About the Author

Robert Christgau wrote for and edited at The Village Voice from 1969 to 2006 and currently contributes a weekly record column at Noisey. His books include Is It Still Good to Ya?: Fifty Years of Rock Criticism, 1967-2017, also published by Duke University Press, and Going into the City: Portrait of a Critic as a Young Man.

More books by Robert Christgau

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Book Cover for: Going Into the City: Portrait of a Critic as a Young Man, Robert Christgau
Book Cover for: Is It Still Good to Ya?: Fifty Years of Rock Criticism, 1967-2017, Robert Christgau
Book Cover for: Grown Up All Wrong: 75 Great Rock and Pop Artists from Vaudeville to Techno, Robert Christgau

What people are saying

Praise for this book

"There are few critics working today with the life-long commitment, focus, and curiosity of Robert Christgau. Book Reports doesn't scan the over half-century of the man's work, and that's what makes it all the more impressive. He's still searching, still pulling volumes from the shelves, looking at new or old ideas, cracking open the spines of preconceived notions all in the service of taking just one more look before walking away with the promise of yet another return."--Christopher John Stephens "Popmatters" (3/26/2019 12:00:00 AM)
"For Christgau fans and anyone seeking thought-provoking musings on books and music."--Melissa Engleman "Library Journal" (2/1/2019 12:00:00 AM)
"One reads Christgau for Christgau as much as for the subject of his work."--Jeff Tamarkin "Mojo" (5/1/2019 12:00:00 AM)
"Though Christgau partisans have the most to gain from this collection, it's also good for anyone looking for an accessible way into his extensive oeuvre."--Chad Comello "Booklist" (4/19/2019 12:00:00 AM)
"Christgau is . . . one of America's sharper public intellectuals of the past half century, and certainly one of its most influential--not to mention one of the better stylists in that cohort. Fun is a big part of why."--David Cantwell "The New Yorker" (5/22/2019 12:00:00 AM)
"Though not everyone will agree with Christgau's views (this reader certainly did not), all readers will likely appreciate his style and approach and the depth of his knowledge about a broad range of popular music. Those curious about popular music may find Christgau's style aggressive at times, but that is exactly the point; Christgau pushes the reader to think. Seasoned readers will discover that Christgau questions authors in a way that encourages one to evaluate a book at a deeper level. In short, this is a great read for fans, critics, and scholars alike."--T. R. Harrison "Choice" (10/1/2019 12:00:00 AM)
"[A] substantial collection of nearly 100 eclectic, thought-provoking, and idea-laden book reviews. . . . [Christgau's] range of topics is impressive, and his references are prolific. These sprightly, highly opinionated 'adventures of an autodidact' reveal Christgau to be a highly literate, astute, and discerning book critic."-- "Kirkus Reviews" (12/22/2018 12:00:00 AM)
"Christgau mostly writes on books by or about notable musicians, though he hits other cultural touchstones too, such as George Orwell's 1984. It's in these nonmusic pieces that Christgau is most successful, shifting focus from his encyclopedic music-industry knowledge to the nuances of language. His essay on books about the 2008 financial crisis is a highlight."-- "Publishers Weekly" (1/7/2019 12:00:00 AM)

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