James Joyces’s Baby Impressions and Other “Awkward Pleasures” of Literary Biography

“I believed I had a fair understanding of W. G. Sebald until I read his biography and saw the black-and-white snapshot of him as a young man standing thigh-deep in a river, topless in wet jeans with a deep tan, defined muscles, and a dagger in his hand.”

Related

Other articles with overlapping topics.

L

Literary Hub

Jeff Jarvis on Mark Twain, America’s First Celebrity Author and Publisher

In the history of the invention of the typesetting machine and the consequent birth of mass media, Mark Twain is the Zelig of our tale, returning frequently as a typesetter in his brother’s ratty newspaper; as a tramp printer witnessing

Jeff Jarvis·Aug 21, 2026

L

Literary Hub

Ways of Connecting: On Writing That Marries the Psychological, the Personal and the Political

Damon Galgut is the most generous-spirited, profoundly gifted and oddly approachable human. I am indebted in ways I can’t count for the critique, the encouragement, the consideration, the commiseration and the line edits (yes, he won the Booker Prize and

Faraaz Mahomed and Damon Galgut·Aug 21, 2026

T

The Conversation

Australian poetry classics: Francis Webb, the 20th century’s ‘most unjustly neglected poet’, is our best kept literary secret

Francis Webb was the first Australian poet to openly discuss mental health crises and the stigmatisation of mental patients.

Toby Davidson, Senior Lecturer in Literary Studies, Macquarie University·Aug 20, 2026

P

Public Books

Birds Beyond Birding

“Looking at birds helps us notice connections, imagine better worlds, and build new solidarities across differences, including across species.” The post Birds Beyond Birding appeared first on Public Books.

Megan Cummins·Aug 21, 2026

T

The Paris Review

If You Build It, Will They Come? On the Sperm Racing World Cup

Onto Sperm Racing’s elegantly vulgar premise, the company has grafted a lame higher purpose intended to justify and temper the joyful stupidity of the enterprise.

Paul McAdory·Aug 21, 2026

Hyperallergic

Miles Greenberg Rehearses Myths for the Future

The artist’s performance videos invoke the wild, inestimable human spirit and make Black people the characters of universal stories.

Seph Rodney·Aug 21, 2026