Colin Marshall

April 5, 2007

Vikram Chandra’s New Novel is All About Intrigue – Indian Style

By Colin Marshall

The literary establishment hasn't yet given pride of place to tales of policemen and criminals, perhaps with good reason.

March 1, 2007

Love By The Numbers

By Colin Marshall

Say the words "science fiction," and the imagination conjures visions of breathtaking advances in physics and biotechnology that transform our world into a dystopia, a utopia or a little of both.

February 8, 2007

Hot for Hedonism

By Colin Marshall

The world of wine writing can be a confusing tangle of high-flown descriptors and bizarre metaphors, owing in no small part to a collective case of tunnel vision on the part of the field's biggest names.

January 25, 2007

Child’s Play

By Colin Marshall

Adam Gopnik's fans have endured an awful dry spell since 2000, when Paris to the Moon, the longtime New Yorker essayist's previous collection, saw publication. His refined, observant prose made the recounted experience o...

January 11, 2007

A Revolutionary Read

By Colin Marshall

Nothing about Only Revolutions, Mark Z. Danielewski's most recent book, is easy - least of all reviewing it. It's built like practically nothing else on the literary shelves, save perhaps for House of Leaves, the author'...

December 7, 2006

Fragile Fiction

By Colin Marshall

Though this reviewer counts himself as one of the uninitiated, Neil Gaiman is said to possess a large, devoted fan base. A cursory investigation on the Internet reveals that this base is, in large part, composed of black...

November 22, 2006

Ode to Economist: Farewell Friedman

By Colin Marshall

Students of economics, you may now feel free to pour your liquor of choice onto the curb. Milton Friedman, perhaps the wisest, most articulate defender of free markets this century has known, has passed away.

November 9, 2006

Janna Levin’s Latest Work Is Good … In Theory

By Colin Marshall

As a genre, historical fiction typically gazes backward and poses the big "what ifs," asking how things might have turned out had the wind blown a little differently all those years ago.

November 2, 2006

Blinded By the Light

By Colin Marshall

Judging by his work, Haruki Murakami bears ambivalence toward a great many things - his homeland, the literary establishment, his generation, the stability of identity and the conventions of narrative structure - to name...

October 19, 2006

Oh, Brother

By Colin Marshall

If the success of exported films and sitcoms is any indication, people find the lives of middle-class Britons - even, or maybe especially, the unremarkable ones - to be highly entertaining.

May 4, 2006

We Must Find a Way to Reduce Society’s Wastefulness

By Colin Marshall

I think that, all things - especially the inhospitable poolside conditions on Venus - considered, Earth is a swell place to live. Some have even established organizations, programs and traditions to act as a buffer again...

April 17, 2006

Value Utility From Wealth and Work

By Colin Marshall

It's an awful truth that, alas, my journalistic scruples cannot ignore: Some majors get more respect than others. As a former disciple of communication, I know what it is to feel deep, nagging shame about one's coursewor...

April 6, 2006

Students’ Inelastic Demand Helps Textbook Prices Soar

By Colin Marshall

Aside from attending class, what pains college students more than spending money? Unfortunately, our lifestyles tend to demand it with some frequency, often resulting in cash hemorrhages that severely outstrip our income...

March 10, 2006

Stein’s Law Can Quell Oil Panic

By Colin Marshall

So, I hear mankind is teetering on the brink of self-destruction. Not a day goes by that the alarm isn't raised about the rapid depletion of our planet's resources, an announcement often accompanied by an ever-diminishin...

March 3, 2006

Shun the Zero-Sum

By Colin Marshall

"Have you ever wondered," once asked the Whispers, one of the finest R&B outfits of the 1970s, "Why to win, somebody's got to lose?" While they most definitely knew how to lay down a solid groove, such an inquiry reveals...

February 23, 2006

Gaucho Economics: Coffee Giant Capitalizes On Demands

By Colin Marshall

Though safely ensconced in Santa Barbara, the land of the nearly perpetual 65-degree day, we still can't escape the vagaries of the seasons. The delusions held by our friends in flip-flops and shorts notwithstanding, it'...