book | Matthew Dicks

I know it’s my kid, but it’s so damn cute.

One of the best ideas that I heard in all of 2015 was this: When a friend of mine gave birth to her first child, one of her friends sent her a gift. It was a book. This book: Possibly one of the cruelest jokes ever. I plan to spend 2016 desperately seeking opportunities to…

He’s not a prodigy. He can’t read this book yet. But he loves books and loves to pretend that he’s reading them. It’s a good start. And he especially loves this one. He’s named after a character in it. Charles Wallace.

My son asked me to read my novel, Unexpectedly, Milo, to him. “Too long,” I told him. “No pictures. Let’s find something else.” It also has an awkward and explicit sex scene in it (which I didn’t bother to mention), so I think he’ll be reading that one on his own some day.

Yesterday, I wished that I knew the story behind this photograph. Thanks to a kind reader, today I know. It was a librarian, of course. Those fanatical zealots of books, always looking for a way, however crazy it may seem, to get a story into your hands. Honestly, who else could it have been?

If you haven’t seen Taylor Swift’s Christmas video, you should. It’s a lovely thing, but it’s also an exceptionally valuable lesson for anyone who creates content. Actors. Writers. Artists. Musicians. Designers. Anyone. Treat the people who make your work possible very, very well. My agent, Taryn, once told me that although she thinks I’m a…

Earlier in the week, I wrote about the sound byte being used by Republicans in response to questions about the existence of climate change: “I’m not a scientist.” Variations of this ridiculous statement include: “The science isn’t all there yet.” “I’ve heard arguments from both sides of the scientific aisle.” House Speaker John Boehner: “Listen,…

I’m not a big college football fan. I don’t have an allegiance to any college football team. But wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell may have turned me into a Georgia Bulldogs fan with his recent foray into, of all things, a book club. It’s a great story. I can’t wait to show this video my students…

I brought my son downstairs for breakfast. As we stepped into the kitchen, he saw the iPad on the counter and said, “iPad! Chair! iPad! Chair!” This is the two year-old version way of saying, “Father, I would very much like to take a seat in my favorite chair and make use of that glorious…

From a piece in the Hartford Courant entitled Wethersfield Library Begins ‘Food For Fines’ Program: For a limited time, Wethersfield Library patrons can pay their overdue fines with a can of beans or a jar of spaghetti sauce. The library’s Food for Fines program, which began Monday and lasts through the end of August, donates…

Posts Tagged ‘book’

Little Boy Wants to Read. Badly.

Cruelest joke of 2015 involved a beautiful new baby and Bill Cosby

The many faces of a little reader

I won’t be reading my novel to my children. For a damn good reason.

Mystery behind this photograph solved, though the solution was fairly obvious.

Taylor Swift teaches a valuable lesson to all content creators.

My possibly petulant “I told you so” climate change Kickstarter idea: I need your feedback. Am I an idiot?

My book club once featured skinny dipping. This book club has a big time college football player for a member. I think they win.

I hereby release myself of all parental guilt regarding the iPad. It was shortsighted, stupid, and purposelessly nostalgic.

I’ve always thought that a library fine was a good thing. Unexpected income. Some librarians have disagreed. Am I wrong?