Slate.com has published two excerpts from the new book Death of a Dissident: Alexander Litvinenko and the Demise of Russian Democracy. The book describes the poisoning last November of Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko. It's written by Alex Goldfarb and Litvinenko's widow Marina.Part OnePart Two

Armistead Maupin's latest installment of his great Tales of the City series comes out this month. Michael Tolliver Lives brings loyal fans up to date on the goings-on of Michael, Mrs Madrigal, Brian, and even the long-missing Mary Ann Singleton. Regular readers of this blog know I like to contrast the American and UK versions … Continue reading It’s Better Over Here

The blog at the Encyclopaedia Britannica website has a very interesting posting about the naturalist Aldo Leopold. It's a very nice summary of Leopold's life and career, including his founding of the Wilderness Society and the Civilian Conservation Corps.If it stirs your interest, you can't do better than to start with Leopold's classic work Sand … Continue reading Aldo Leopold