Readings

Understanding Hugo Chavez

In this excerpt from his book The Dictator's Learning Curve, William J. Dobson looks back at the conditions that made it possible for Hugo Chavez to win power democratically, and then wield it the way he did.

||Though they later fell out, Richard Wright (left) provided encouragement to a young Ralph Ellison and got him the job that provided much of the material for Invisible Man.
Writers and Mentors and What Happens In Between

On the vagaries and virtues of the literary mentorship—Miranda Hill talks with Rick Moody, Jim Shepard, Zsuzsi Gartner, Sarah Selecky, and John Burnside.

||From the Brokers with hands on their faces tumblr.
Costly Advice

The case here described is real, witnessed by the author in Small Claims court. The names have been changed and some details and times condensed. This week: a client's bad trades on the stock market lead to a dispute over commissions.