Michael Paarlberg is an assistant professor of political science at Virginia Commonwealth University, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania, and an associate fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC. He has written for the New Republic, Slate, In These Times, Jacobin, and the Washington City Paper. Follow Michael on Twitter @Mpaarlberg
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The Behaviour of Love by Virginia Reeves review physician, heal thyself
FictionReviewThe tale of a US psychologist in 1970s Montana vividly captures the unpredictability of attraction
In one of his most wittily morbid lyrics, Leonard Cohen reflected on medicine’s inability to treat a particular function of the body and mind: “The doctors working day and night / But they’ll never ever find that cure for love.” In Virginia Reeves’s second novel, Dr Ed Malinowski, a behavioural psychologist in Montana in the early 1970s, is stricken with life-threatening desire while attempting a sort of cure through love.
The top five sci-fi, fantasy and comic-book films of 2013 | Science fiction and fantasy films
Week in geekScience fiction and fantasy filmsThe top five sci-fi, fantasy and comic-book films of 2013It was a bumper year for science fiction movies, and spectacle films are getting better, so we end the year with a nod to the best geek flicks of 2013 More from the Week in geek series
The best films of 2013
The films to watch in 2014
The superhero film gets stronger, while art house film-makers decry the lack of big-screen directing opportunities.
Are you a faithful? The Traitors TV hit spawns online game and merchandise galore | Reality TV
The ObserverReality TVAre you a faithful? The Traitors TV hit spawns online game and merchandise galoreAs season two of the reality BBC show gets underway, fans can test their detective powers from the comfort of home
If there was a bit of treachery at work inside your home, would you spot it? Parlour games that involve an element of domestic detection, or even barefaced fibbing, have been popular since well before Cluedo was invented in 1943.
Bewitched: Salvator Rosa's satanic art | Painting
Jonathan Jones on artPaintingBewitched: Salvator Rosa's satanic artThe 17th-century master's painting seethes with demonic figures, but do they reflect his fear of witchcraft or simply a fascination with fear itself?The first rays of morning touch distant clouds with orange and unfurl a pennant of blue sky above black hills. But that's it for light. In about 1646, the artist and poet Salvator Rosa made darkness visible. He gave physical form to the shadows of the night.
Debt collectors, dodgy turf and medical bills: the brutal realities of life in MLR
Jack Iscaro of Old Glory DC carries the ball against Rugby New York Ironworkers in Mount Vernon, New York in March. Photograph: Al Bello/Getty Images for Rugby New YorkJack Iscaro of Old Glory DC carries the ball against Rugby New York Ironworkers in Mount Vernon, New York in March. Photograph: Al Bello/Getty Images for Rugby New YorkRugby unionThe US pro rugby league is a start-up scrapping for its place in the sports world.
George Michael leaves hospital after falling from car on motorway | George Michael
George Michael This article is more than 10 years oldGeorge Michael leaves hospital after falling from car on motorwayThis article is more than 10 years oldPop star thanks wellwishers for their support after receiving treatment for head injuryGeorge Michael has left hospital after being treated for injuries following a bizarre incident on the M1. The singer was airlifted to hospital with a head injury after falling from his vehicle on to the motorway earlier this month, although his publicist, Connie Filipello, initially said his injuries were superficial cuts and bruises.
I had to compose myself when I first heard her: the astonishing musical versatility of the lat
Folk musicFrom rap mixtapes to music journalism and ghostly drum machine-led folk, the late British artist had few boundaries. Her husband and fans remember her tough, inspiring life
In 1998, an album was released that made quiet ripples. Recorded in the evenings after she had put her four-year-old to bed, Charlotte Greig recorded simple versions of folk songs and originals about lovers and ghosts that come to you at night. She used a four-track cassette recorder to tape her voice, harmonium, dulcimer and an idiosyncratically programmed Dr Rhythm drum machine.
Ibrahim Ferrer | Culture | The Guardian
CultureObituaryIbrahim FerrerIbrahim Ferrer, who has died in Havana at the age of 78, was one of greatest of all Cuban singers. A charming, remarkably humble man, he was blessed with a voice that could tackle anything from Cuba's romantic ballads, boleros, to the up-tempo improvised "son" dance songs in which he specialised in his early career.
Ferrer established his worldwide reputation late in life after a fairy-tale transformation of fortunes. In the late 1990s, he moved from impoverished retirement, in which he supplemented his pension by earning occasional extra money as an elderly shoe-shine boy or selling lottery tickets, to the concert halls of the world, first as lead male singer with the best-selling Buena Vista Social Club, and then as a soloist in his own right.
Peach bum pants crack the Chinese fruit market
ShortcutsFashionMedia in China report that vendors are dressing peaches in tiny knickers to mark the upcoming Qixi festivalHave you ever noticed that a peach looks a bit like a human bottom? Have you ever sought to draw attention to this fact by dressing a peach in a tiny pair of women's knickers? What do you mean "of course not, what a weird question"?
A fruit vendor in Nanjing, China has started selling peaches wearing tiny pairs of knickers in celebration of the upcoming Qixi festival, the Chinese version of Valentine's Day.