This is from the “You Just Can’t Make This Stuff Up” Department: A friend of mine who is studying in England ordered a book from the library. His order was canceled for the following reason: UNABLE TO FETCH BOOK KEPT ON TOP SHELF IN GALLERY. DUE TO NEW HEALTH & SAFETY MEASURES STEP LADDERS CAN NO LONGER BE USED.
But I’m not too worried. I’m sure that soon enough the library will hire a professional Step Ladder Technician.
Notes on Anosmia
One morning several years ago, as my wife, Wendy, and I were having breakfast together, I had…
Empire of Unreality
Shiva Naipaul (1945–1985) was the author of three novels and two books of mordant dispatches from places…
The Dreadful Christ of Pär Lagerkvist
It’s dangerous to meet a god,” says the disgraced Pythia in Pär Lagerkvist’s The Sibyl. Her observation…