Is Joshua Foer the New George Plimpton?

The hard-to-please Michiko Kakutani might just have a crush on Joshua Foer. How else to explain her fullsome praise for the young author? To wit, "Joshua Foer tackles the subject of memory the way George Plimpton tackled pro football and boxing." And "His narrative is smart and funny and, like the work of Dr. Oliver Sacks, it’s informed by a humanism that enables its author to place the mysteries of the brain within a larger philosophical and cultural context."

Those are heady comparisons for Mr Foer, and the New York Times is hardly alone in its plaudits. The Washington Post called the book "passionate and deeply engrossing." The Seattle Times said it's a "inspired and well-written debut book about not just memorization, but about what it means to be educated and the best way to become so, about expertise in general, and about the not-so-hidden "secrets" of acquiring skills."

Joshua Foer will be at M&Q to read from Moonwalking with Einstein on Thursday, March 24, at 7:30pm. Details are here.--David E