From the Stacks: July 6, 2007

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Published by the Great Books Foundation, the Common Review offers an accessible look into the world of education and literature. In the Summer issue,? critic Michael B?rub? explains that for all the bile that his high-minded colleagues have hurled at J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, they have missed one crucial point: Potent narratives can cultivate young minds, even if they are bereft of literary flourish. In defense of the Potter books, B?rub? recounts how they shaped the intellectual ability of his son, who has Down syndrome. Other notable articles include Kevin Mattson's reflective essay on how teaching history through movies highlighted the profit motives driving the 'post-modern academy,' and Firoozeh Papan-Matin's critique of Azar Nafisi's widely-read memoir Reading Lolita in Tehran. -- Eric Kelsey

For its fourth issue, the editors at the humor journal Opium have decided that people need another self-help guide, albeit a satirical one. Under the title 'Live Well Now (No Matter What),' the issue doles out laughing pills from Jack Handey and Shellie Zacharia, among many others. In Zacharia's story, 'Luckily, Lucy Sims Has No Stamps,' a fictional social studies teacher, fueled by a bottle of wine, channels her many grievances into seven letters that will go unmailed: to her ex-husband Bill, the parents of her students, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and a few others who will never read about her gripes with them. To keep the reader on the path to self-improvement, the magazine prints an aphorism at the top of each even-numbered page ('#62: Self-virtualize into the beyond of your dreams'). Each piece also comes with an average reading time, presumably to lampoon our inability to leisurely enjoy the simple pleasure of reading. -- Eric Kelsey

Arabia Felix comes all the way from Yemen, providing a closer look at culture in the Middle East. The photography in the magazine stands out, especially in the Spring issue's cover story showcasing the stunning and unusual landscape of the isolated Socotra, also known as 'the Galapagos of the Indian Ocean.' The issue also features a profile on Naif al-Mutawa, creator of THE 99, a series of Islamic comics in which each superhero embodies one of the 99 traits of Allah. Al-Mutawa explains that he hopes to utilize the characters to help generate global unity within Islamic ideals: 'I want this to be for everybody, not to be sectarian. I am in this for what unites us, not what separates us.' --Julie Dolan

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