The Time of the Assassins

Posted on January 25, 2017 by John Biscello

Review of Henry Miller’s study on Arthur Rimbaud, The Time of the Assassins, appearing in Riot Material.

“Published in 1956, when atomic anxiety and McCarthy-led witch-hunts were all the rage, Miller’s book functions on multiple levels. It is a meditative essay on both the myth and reality of Rimbaud, a hymn to soul-play and self-expression, a whetted scalpel dissecting white-wig morality and ready-made life-wear, and, as always is the case with Miller, a peep-show into the author’s psyche. You could also say that it’s a ticking time-bomb of a spiritual guide, or self-help book with black lung, as Miller summons the verve and electric strain of such prophetic heavies as Blake and Whitman in raising the roof.”

Read the full review here.

About John Biscello

Originally from Brooklyn, NY, writer, poet, performer, and playwright, John Biscello, has lived in the high-desert grunge-wonderland of Taos, New Mexico since 2001. He is the author of four novels, Broken Land, a Brooklyn Tale, Raking the Dust, Nocturne Variations, and No Man’s Brooklyn; a collection of stories, Freeze Tag, two poetry collections, Arclight and Moonglow on Mercy Street; and a fable, The Jackdaw and the Doll, illustrated by Izumi Yokoyama. He also adapted classic fables, which were paired with the vintage illustrations of artist, Paul Bransom, for the collection: Once Upon a Time, Classic Fables Reimagined. His produced, full-length plays include: LOBSTERS ON ICE, ADAGIO FOR STRAYS, THE BEST MEDICINE, ZEITGEIST, U.S.A., and WEREWOLVES DON’T WALTZ.

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