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Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Media / Books You Should Read the New Issue of n+1

Posted by Paul Constant on Tue, Apr 27, 2010 at 3:32 PM

We got a copy of n+1 number 9 in the mail the other day. It's n+1's best issue in quite a while.

The issue kicks off with a great long essay. It's a brief history of the internet, and a look at what it means for our mental health, along with a side trip to consider whether video games are, in fact, art. I know that those topics sound like they've been battered to the ground, but there is at least one good idea and/or striking image per page here. It's not a lazy essay by a wanna-be futurist; it's a well-thought-out, considerate piece of literature.

The magazine continues with a look at unemployment and whether full employment is a good, workable idea. There's a personal essay about living in Miami; an exploration of what our brief fascination with Octomom said about the recession; a brief excerpt of Sam Lipsyte's great new novel The Ask; and reviews of many books, including Max Brooks's zombie oeuvre.

All in all, it's a dense, smart journal covering dozens of seemingly disparate subjects, which is pretty much my definition of what a good magazine should be. If you only buy one magazine this month, make it this one.

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Posted by ok on April 27, 2010 at 3:42 PM

This just in. Old artist (writing) considers new art (video games) not to be true art. I completely agree for the same reasons photography is not consider art.

Posted by Packeteer on April 27, 2010 at 4:31 PM

photography is not considered art. wtf??

Posted by fuck_knuckles on April 27, 2010 at 5:15 PM

If video games cannot be considered art (and I'm not saying every one has to clear that bar, but some certainly do), than neither is film. Roger Ebert said the same thing recently (apparently just to piss off video game enthusiasts), and there are so many obvious reasons why he's wrong that it's not worth listing them. I'll provide a link to a thoughtful rebuttal instead. (Link) And yeah, it's Cracked.com, but the points he makes are valid nonetheless.

Posted by Knat on April 27, 2010 at 7:22 PM

I couldn't agree more. After I read the new issue I bought gift subscriptions for two friends of mine right away. The letters exchange is also firecracker stuff. N + 1 has become the place to read about the fizzle of the "new economy".
Have you read the new Baffler? It seems there's a renaissance of the cranky neo-Marxists, and I couldn't be more pleased at the timing.

Posted by BigTimeBob on April 27, 2010 at 9:07 PM

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