Allen Barra was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle's 2005 Nona Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing. He can reached at commentsforbarra@aol.com.
A controversial new biography collects just about every rumor and bad story ever told about baseball icon Alex Rodriguez. But who leaked his drug tests, and what do they mean, anyway?
Flannery O'Connor wrote two novels and died young, but her influence has been vast. Why has it taken half a century for her to get a definitive biography?
Richard Nixon continues to fascinate and repel us. On the 35th anniversary of Watergate, is it time to stop kicking Dick around and reconsider his accomplishments?
When Paul Auster is at his best he's like a brilliant magician. When he's not -- as with his latest -- it's as if he's sawing away without a woman in the box.
With the release of "Casino Royale," I read Ian Fleming's classic Bond novels again and discovered a talented spy who was "just like us" and a writer devoted to pleasure.
Rejecting Freudian analysis and embracing his true identity, Edmund White penned two landmarks of gay literature and redefined the autobiographical novel.
In "King of the Jews," Nick Tosches takes on Arnold Rothstein, the legendary gangland figure who fixed a World Series, mentored young hoodlums, and inspired F. Scott Fitzgerald.
