Postings | Linda Kass Bessie

My monthly musings have continued, migrating to the website of my bookstore, Gramercy Books. Find it here:

The Gift of Books: A Writer Turns Bookseller

I’ve been in love with books as long as I can remember. A trip to the library or bookstore continues to be a deep-seeded pleasure. After...

The Holocaust on Trial: A Legal Battle for Historical Truth

In the film “Denial,” based on a true story, college history professor and author Deborah Lipstadt (Rachel Weisz) is sued for libel by...

A Book Club Feast with Billy Collins and William Maxwell

Five years ago I talked my book club into bringing two masters of language to our ritual readers' gathering. We were in our...

FAVORITE NOVELS, PART ONE

As a writer (Tasa’s Song, She Writes Press, May 2016), I am a voracious reader. Fall is a great time to share cherished novels, from...

Wandering and wondering through 'Diane Arbus: In the Beginning' at the Met

The late photographer Diane Arbus, whose work and life have been the subject of multiple biographies (the most recent being Arthur...

In rendering the history of Hamilton for Broadway, Lin-Manuel Miranda forges a new frame

Alexander Hamilton, a founding father and the first Secretary of the Treasury of the U.S., died on July 12, 1804 at the age of 49. He is...

‘A Book in Concert’: Carpe Diem String Quartet’s Music To My Words

Not many authors have a musical event integrated into their book debuts. I count myself incredibly fortunate to have created one art form...

Composing a Novel in Song: An Interview with Violinist Charles Wetherbee

Note from the author: Charles Wetherbee and the entire Carpe Diem String Quartet joined me May 20-22, 2016 for a “Book In Concert” at the...

National Poetry Month: Mickiewicz, Akhmatova, Pushkin featured in TASA’S SONG

April’s arrival of National Poetry Month got me thinking about the role poetry plays in my upcoming novel, Tasa’s Song, a story about an...

Why I Love Beethoven’s Fifth

Note: March is a key month in the life of Ludwig van Beethoven. In March of 1778, at the age of eight, Beethoven had his very first...