literature

Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.

Is YouTube Down?
It’s a modern-day moment of panic for millions: you settle in to watch a video, only to be met with a spinning buffer wheel or an enigmatic playback error. The immediate question pops into your head and into search bars worldwide: "Is YouTube down?" When the platform hosting over 2 billion users goes offline, even briefly, it creates a digital earthquake.
By KAMRAN AHMAD6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Amadeus" by Peter Shaffer
You're probably wondering why I'm doing so many rereads and perhaps it's because I'm feeling a bit nostalgic, but perhaps it is also because I'm yearning for great literature that I have enjoyed in the past. In the ways of repairing my mental health from the years 2024/2025 which was horrific for me (I mean it was quite possibly the worst year of my life), I have decided to reread some classics I have enjoyed. I'm not going to go for the usual classics I've enjoyed in the past, but I'm instead going towards things that when I first read them, moved me in a way I didn't think was possible from a book that didn't appear in my top 20. If you've read my review of Night by Elie Wiesel then you'll understand. Amadeus is my next one...
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Wake Up" by Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac was definitely a prolific writer and there was so much released after his death that was never actually intended to be released ever. When I first read The Sea is My Brother, I couldn't help but think about whether Kerouac would have ever released this thing had he lived a little longer. I came to the conclusion that he would've probably done a Bob Dylan-esque 'Bootleg' situation and released them as writings from the past himself. When it comes to Wake Up though, I feel like it reads a bit like something Kerouac was working on but never really saw a future in. It's a bit overly simple and not quite exactly what I was hoping for out of him.
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
When Reality Slides
Reality—however you define it (and most define it as a deeply “multi-layered onion,” to borrow from Jim Goad)—cannot be denied having its own hypnotic, imprisoning power. We know, ultimately, that everything is an illusion, a surface. A blink of an eye, the pull of a trigger, and all is forgotten—all erased. Instantly.
By Tom Baker6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Last Tycoon" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
“Even that afternoon, I could still see the remains of the atmosphere of failure hanging over from the Depression” - "The Last Tycoon" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Regency Roadsters
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a literary character in possession of a distinct personality, must be in want of a car. And so, in the spirit of modern matchmaking, I've traded in carriages for convertibles, estates for engines, and discovered which each Pride and Prejudice character would drive today- from Mr. Darcy's brooding luxury coupe to Lydia's questionable convertible choices.
By Brie Boleyn6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Loitering with Intent" by Muriel Spark
Muriel Spark is a wonderful author. One of my most recent reads by her before this one was The Driver's Seat and it was so dark and delicious that I was captivated from start to finish. The philosophy that drives the novel is often quite flexible, and therefore not very strong - and that's the whole point. The character is painted as floundering, barely keeping their head above the surface of the proverbial water and once they drop, they end up somewhere they didn't intend to with someone they didn't intend to be with. The Driver's Seat, unfortunately for this book, is still my favourite Muriel Spark novel. But that doesn't mean that this one wasn't worth the read. It definitely was...
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Flight to Arras" by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Suddenly an absurd image comes to me: stopped clocks. Every clock, stopped. Church clocks, station clocks, Mantelpiece clocks in empty houses. The clock-maker has fled: in the window of his shop, an ossuary of dead clocks. It's war...no one winds the clocks. No one gathers the beetroot. No one repairs the carts. And the water, captured and piped to quench thirst or to whiten fine Sunday lace for village girls, runs into a spreading pool outside the church. And we die, in summer..."
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "POPism" by Andy Warhol and Pat Hackett
You have probably read my review of The Philosophy of Andy Warhol and if you haven't then you probably want to get yourself over there. POPism is a much longer book and has more of Andy Warhol himself in it - it is less about his philosophy and more about his life. It begins in a pretty odd place and sometimes he even talks about getting shot. At the moment, I'm pretty confused about the state of Jackson Pollock but on the whole, I've enjoyed this text. Don't worry, there's no narrative about weird stuff I find in a book to go with this one. But the book itself is a whole different story...
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Sons and Lovers by DH Lawrence
Published in 1913, Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence is a semi-autobiographical novel that draws heavily from Lawrence’s own experiences growing up in a working-class mining community in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire. The novel was Lawrence’s third, following The White Peacock (1911) and The Trespasser (1912), and it marked his emergence as a significant literary figure.
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Butcher" by Jennifer Hillier
I've never read a book by Jennifer Hillier before and well, I got this one on my phone because it was cheaper. I want to read more creepy and scary novels because obviously, Halloween is coming up. The Butcher is a book that fits that scary vibe but alongside that it also has a comment on power dynamics in which we can see the modern world through the lens of something that is horrifically wrong. There are so many possibilities in this book and though it keeps you on the edge of your seat, it also gives you a lot to think about.
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Maggie Cassidy" by Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac is one of those writers I read a lot of in university. I had a great time in my teens with books like On the Road and The Town and the City. But when I got to university, I found a whole new sea of books to read by him with one of my favourites being The Sea is My Brother. When it came to Maggie Cassidy, I think I must have skipped over this one or just missed it out. Books like Mexico City Blues got me obsessed in my university years too - I have no idea how Maggie Cassidy missed my gaze though. Well, the language is beautiful and the writing is simply fantastic. Let's see what it is about then...
By Annie Kapur6 months ago in Geeks