A few items

Man is Denis Johnson's Vietnam epic Tree of Smoke getting some buzz. Check the NYT, (Good morning and please listen to me: Denis Johnson is a true American artist, and “Tree of Smoke” is a tremendous book, a strange entertainment, very long but very fast, a great whirly ride that starts out sad and gets sadder and sadder, loops unpredictably out and around, and then lurches down so suddenly at the very end that it will make your stomach flop) and Esquire. The LA Times takes a more moderate view. Anyway, keep your eyes on it.

In my recollection, The Mist is my favorite Stephen King story. It has the build-up, the scares, the human foibles and failures and a wonderfully ambiguous ending. I somehow forgot the whole religion angle upon which the trailer for the upcoming film. This makes me wonder about books that I fondly remember. How much is due to my reaction at the time and how much would it differ now?

Is there really an anti-pie trend about the land, as this column claims? If so, people need to get their hands on Ken Haedrich's Pie book.