Dear Friends,
This has been a wonderful year for the Bookman and our circle of friends, writers, and supporters. The Bookman published over a hundred reviews, essays, interviews, and symposia in 2014. Among them we would note the symposia we held on James Poulos’s important essay on the “pink police state,” including contributions from such rising conservative writers as Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry and J. Arthur Bloom, and on the presence of religion in virtual worlds.
Our most-read pieces for 2014 include Pedro Blas González’s essay on the difference between happiness and joy, Mackinder’s geopolitics, an interview with historian George Nash about Hoover’s war against collectivism, and a look at Eliot’s Prufrock in graphic novel form. This range of pieces shows the Bookman at its best: furthering the Permanent Things through new voices and classic texts, and comparing new books against old truths.
Our reviewers were also recognized, with one—Caleb Stegall—being selected for the Kansas Supreme Court, our first Bookman jurist! The law is something we have long covered, being suspicious as our founder Russell Kirk was of archonocracy, or rule of judges. We would refer Mr. Justice Stegall to, among other pieces, Bruce Frohnen on judicial review in April, and a consideration of Edward Coke and the Western legal tradition this past August. Now-Justice Stegall last wrote for us on The Wizard of Oz and his home state.
Two other reviewers also had their Bookman pieces republished. Gene Schlanger’s critical piece on poet Cynthia Olds was selected for inclusion in Gale’s Contemporary Literary Criticism, and James Seaton included his Bookman essay, “A Stirring Defense of the Conversation” for his new volume, Literary Criticism from Plato to Postmodernism: The Humanistic Alternative.
We have much more planned for 2015, but we need your help. As you may know, The University Bookman is run by part-time staff on a budget funded almost entirely from donations and grants. Our available funds will not cover our plans for the new year, including more symposia, attracting more conservative writers of talent, and publishing more e-books, among other areas. We would deeply appreciate any support you can offer for the continued success of the nation’s oldest conservative book review.
The past few years have seen a rise in book reviews; reading as a serious intellectual pursuit is not dead—far from it. Yet unfortunately few of these new reviews make room for conservative voices. We like to think there are enough conservatives and others who enjoy good writing about important books to support an effort like the Bookman, so please tell others about us, follow us on Twitter, or join our Facebook page.
And please consider a donation. You can donate to us here through the Russell Kirk Center. Thank you very much for your support!
We had a great 2014. Please consider supporting the Bookman and help us expand our offerings in 2015!
