View source for December 21, 2019

{{short description|Some notes on Lawrence Shainberg’s new memoir.}}
{{Large|''Four Men Shaking'': Some Comments and Notes}}
[[File:Shainberg.jpg|thumb]]
Currently, I’m reading [[w:Lawrence Shainberg|Lawrence Shainberg]]’s memoir ''[https://amzn.to/2PLWhr2 Four Men Shaking]'' to review for the next volume of ''[[pm:The Mailer Review|The Mailer Review]]''. I’m about half-way through, and I wish I was more engaged with it. It’s well-written and it’s about subjects that engage me—Zen, neuroscience, literary studies, and Norman Mailer—but I’m not as into it as I thought I’d be. I was really into Buddhism and meditation about a year ago, but I feel I’ve forgotten everything I’ve learned. I think I was a bit more clear-eyed when I was meditating. I’m not sure why I stopped. Surely it’s better than taking anti-depressants. Anyway, I feel a bit unqualified to be reviewing this book. I’m sure it will come together, if I can just sit down and finish the damn book.

His memories of {{NM}} are colorful—so far revolving around the meals they’ve had together at Michael Shay’s in Provincetown. Shainberg paints Mailer as bigger-then-life—not too surprising—and credits ''[[w:The Armies of the Night|The Armies of the Night]]'' with inspiring Shainberg’s own interest in journalism. 

I think the book revolves around Shainberg and how three other men—his Zen master, Mailer, and {{c|Samuel Beckett}}—have influenced his thinking and approach to life. So far, we’ve seen nothing of Beckett.

{{Small|''[[January 6, 2020|To Be Continued. . .]]''}}

{{EZ}}

===References===
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* {{cite web |url=http://www.thezengateway.com/latest-news/book-review-four-men-shaking-by-lawrence-shainberg |title=Book Review: Four Men Shaking by Lawrence Shainberg |author=<!--Unstated--> |date=2019 |website=The Zen Gateway |publisher= |access-date=2019-12-23 |quote=This is less the story of ‘four men shaking’, than of one lay practitioner who struggles mightily—like so many of us—to come to terms with himself. |ref=harv }}
* {{cite web |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-61180-729-5 |title=Four Men Shaking: Searching for Sanity with Samuel Beckett, Norman Mailer, and My Perfect Zen Teacher |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=July 2019 |website=Publishers Weekly |publisher= |access-date=2019-12-23 |quote=Shainberg’s enlightening memoir about three transformative relationships is accessible, deceptively simple, and wise. |ref=harv }}
* {{cite magazine |last=Taylor |first=Christopher |date=July 2019 |title=New Books |url=https://harpers.org/archive/2019/07/semicolon-cecelia-watson-four-men-shaking-lawrence-shainberg-lafcadio-hearn-andrei-codrescu/ |magazine=Harper's |pages= |access-date=2019-12-23 |ref=harv |quote=His depictions of the elderly Mailer, who says things like ‘I can’t dominate shrimp anymore,’ suggest that Beckett was right about Shainberg’s gifts as an observer. }}
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[[Category:Books]]
[[Category:Samuel Beckett]]