“Sometimes you have to take a break from being the kind of boss that’s always trying to teach people things. Sometimes you just have to be the boss of dancing.”
― Michael Scott, The Office
10 best new UK novelists ?
At The Observer Anthony Cummins offers their 'annual pick of the most exciting debut fiction', in Meet the 10 best new novelists for 2024 -- with short Q & As with each of the ten.
How Anna Weyant Became The Most Talked About Painter In The Art World
Washington Post – The best book-logging apps for 2024 [read free] “Goodreads, which was acquired by Amazon in 2013, is one of the most popular book review apps. (Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.)
But as the app faces criticism for its buggy, outdated tech and poor content moderation, other options are rising in the ranks. Some don’t like that Amazon uses Goodreads data to inform its book-selling business, while authors allege the app doesn’t do enough to combat bad-faith “review-bombing” and author harassment. Goodreads vice president of marketing and editorial Suzanne Skyvara said the company has expanded its customer service team and added a feature that pauses review submissions during “unusual activity” such as review-bombing.
If you want a less contentious or more privacy-friendly home for your to-be-read list, here are our CliffsNotes on four of our favorite book-logging apps for Goodreads defectors. (Keep in mind that any time you search a linked database — such as Google, Apple Books or Amazon — inside one of these apps, that company will receive information about your query.)…”
RSS Anything
Transform any old website with a list of links into an RSS Feed. Enter a URL – Get feed URL.
New year thoughts and fancies
A cluster of links and things for 2024. Why [Apple’s] Vision Pro will change photography / a residential modular synthesis course with Tom Whitwell / the landscapes of Stephen Wong. Interview at Artnet / more art, this time a slightly deeper dive into the Berlusconi Collection, a wealth of ‘beauty and pleasantness’, including many ‘academic nudes’ / exquisite paper miniatures by Hannah Levesque / Fabian Oefner likes slicing things up / more sculptural chaos, the work of Thomas Deininger / Banksy 0, Peckham 1 / DIY Cronenberg with this umbilical iPhone cable (via Kottke) / a stark look at our architectural monoculture.
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The life of Winifred Pink, inter-war racing car driver and competitor at events like the JCC Dean Hill Climb. First link from the excellent Histories of Women Working in Engineering and Construction in the UK / the Little Wheels Museum, an expansive collection of diecast model cars / the worst tech failures of 2023 / Jim Henson’s Kermit-green Lotus / a collection of anti-social boardgames / a Gallery of Portable Gaming Systems / Christmas cards by legendary art directors / the enduring mystery of Oak Island.
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An excellent Spotify playlist in memory of architectural historian Elain Harwood / the football stadiums that never were / binaural brainwave generator / annual round-up of spooky podcasts / the synths of Roger O’Donnell / The Office Party, at Adam Curtis’s long-neglected blog (via clickclickJim) / Jesu’s Christmas EP/ thanks to those who have suggested code tweaks and other upgrades to things. Happy new year.