grin and bare it
A blog by Matthew Dicks
Nothing good can come of it
When I am helping a friend or colleague prepare for a confrontation with a coworker, boss, family member, or similar individual, I often ask the same question: What is your expectation for a reasonable outcome?…
Read MoreI don’t care if Glenn Beck is on your Christmas list
An excellent question from Kate Ward of Shelf Life in regards to gift-giving etiquette: “Is it possible to feel good about spending $20 for a book you despise but know your loved one will devour?”…
Read MoreAnother review to close out 2009
Hartford Magazine reviewed Something Missing for their January 2010 edition, which arrived at my home this week. Marion Dooling writes that “Matthew Dicks’s tale about OCD thief Martin Railsback and his clients is a fun,…
Read MoreMy 2009 Christmas haul
My wife is the best gift giver ever, and particularly the best stocking stuffer of all time. My gifts from Christmas morning included: 1. A signed first edition of Kurt Vonnegut’s A Man Without a…
Read MoreThe Simpsons and me
In 1989, I was eighteen years old. I had just graduated high school and quickly moved out on my own. I lived in a townhouse in Attleboro, Massachusetts, with two friends. One was going to…
Read MoreWhat woman buys this stuff?
This product litters the counter of my local 7-11, and it’s always half-empty or better. I don’t get it.
Read MoreHollywood does it right
Having just finished reading Under the Dome and Scroogenomics, I’ve decided to treat myself to a re-reading of Peter Benchley’s JAWS, a book I have not read since I was a teenager. I’m hoping it’s…
Read MoreLiterally singing the praises of books!
What’s better than an independent bookseller singing the praises of your book to the tune of a classic Christmas carol? Not much!
Read MoreUncommonly bad advice
My wife is Jewish. I am not. I have agreed to raise our daughter in the Jewish tradition, though, for my wife, this tends to lean more on the cultural aspects of the Jewish faith…
Read MoreNo more ring
My wife called me at work to tell me that the phone service in our home was out. “The internet and cable?” I asked, panicking inside. A Friday night at home without the internet? What…
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