The University Bookman

Reviewing Books that Build Culture

Watch James Panero of the New Criterion discuss “The Urbanity of Russell Kirk” at the 2025 Gerald Russello Memorial Lecture.

The Urbanity of Russell Kirk

“The urban fabric must also be mended and darned through continuous upkeep. The city is not yours to experiment. From Russell to Russello, our ancestral spirits cast their shadows whether or not we choose to observe the city of god in the cities of men.”

Enchanting Criticism: Dana Gioia as Literary Critic 

“Gioia’s latest book is a testament to the persistence of authentic criticism in an age suspicious of and even hostile to literary values.”

The Machine or the Garden?

“What Kingsnorth brilliantly exposes in Against the Machine is how the progressive vision of scientific, industrial, and technological progress is actually destroying the wisdom of the past in its merciless pursuit of perfection. Kingsnorth reminds us of the great taboo of modernity: ‘There is no such thing as a perfect society, and anyone who tries to build one will either go mad or become a tyrant.’”

What Plato Meant

“…Princeton University philosopher and political theorist Melissa Lane explores Plato’s notion of rule and governorship, attempting to refresh the humanistic, liberal reading of Plato’s political theory.”

Thinking as a Human Being

Thinking as a Human Being

“…the world we are involved in is cognitively sorted by us according to the purposes and concerns of our form of life, which is in turn… shaped by the structures, traditions and worldviews in which we bodily participate. This poses a major challenge for AI…”

JP O’Malley Interviews Author Ian Buruma

JP O’Malley Interviews Author Ian Buruma

Ian Buruma published The Collaborators: Three Stories of Deception and Survival in World War II early last year. The University Bookman contributor JP O’Malley caught up with Mr. Buruma to discuss his latest book.

Imprisoned by the Internet

Imprisoned by the Internet

“…James’s volume is an accessible invitation to consider the possibility that the internet as such—wholly apart from any particular content—is forming people in essentially malign ways.”

The Book Gallery

A collection of conversations with Bookman editor Luke C. Sheahan and writers and authors of imagination and erudition. Click on the icon in the upper right corner of the video to see more episodes in this series or check out our YouTube page.

Enchanting Criticism: Dana Gioia as Literary Critic
Oliver Spivey on "Poetry as Enchantment: And Other Essays" by Dana Gioia.
@PaulDryBooks

The Machine or the Garden?
@paul_jkrause on "Against the Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity" by Paul Kingsnorth.
@PenguinBooks @randomhouse

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