BOMBS and books: violence is a narrow short cut, dialog is a road without end. But bombs that set out to stop dialog will not end up doing so. The party ‘over there’ might die, yet this does not mean the killers automatically win: their truth is not suddenly acknowledged. Whereas books—wherein dialog thrives—have back covers, the perfect book would be unfinished.

Maybe this is why people are impatient. There is always haste among the bel