"What makes Boylan’s novel so brilliant is that it’s relatable. It conjures up early 20th century Paris and Vienna with superlative clarity while describing events and characters that are all entirely relevant." --Dante Pettapiece. Read it and see if you agree!

Steve McQueen and Jacqueline Bisset on the set of "Bullitt," 1968.

Thomas Bernhard reading a newspaper in a restaurant in Salzburg.

Joanne Woodward reading John O'Hara.

Happy fourth!

Samuel Beckett in Alberto Giacometti's studio, admiring Giacometti's sculpture of a tree for "Waiting for Godot," 1961.

The Medici Fountain (La Fontaine Médicis) in the Luxembourg Gardens, Paris.

Paul Cézanne at work near Aix-en-Provence, 1906.

William Faulkner pouring himself a cup of joe.

Leo Tolstoy in his study at Yasnaya Polyana, 1905.

The giant chess boards in the Parc des Bastions, Geneva. I lost a few games there.

Irene Papas and Yves Montand in Costa-Gavras' great film "Z," 1969. Roger Ebert called it "almost unbearably exciting. 'Z' is at the same time a political cry of rage and a brilliant suspense thriller."

Ernest and Mary Hemingway feeding a baby antelope in the Serengeti National Park in Africa, 1953.

Vineyards in the Texas Hill Country near Fredericksburg. Malbec and Sangiovese grapes thrive here.

President Nixon bowling at the White House bowling alley, 1970.

Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, California. Cash played a concert there in January, 1968, which significantly revived his career, then in a slump.

James Mason and director Sam Peckinpah taking a break during the production of "Cross of Iron," 1977. Orson Welles said the film was "the best war film about the ordinary enlisted man since 'All Quiet on the Western Front.'" Many disagreed, but the film was a hit in Germany.

Summertime in Robin Hood's Bay, North Yorkshire.

A review by me of some of my work. (That's not me.)

Vineyards with Pinot Noir grapes near Beaune, in Burgundy, France.