James Penner is the editor of Timothy Leary: The Harvard Years (2014) and the author of Pinks, Pansies, and Punks: The Rhetoric of Masculinity in American Literary Culture (2011).
James Penner
Articles
Acid’s First Convert, Cary Grant: On Edward J. Delaney’s “The Acrobat"
James Penner on Edward J. Delaney’s 2022 novel “The Acrobat."
A Giant Peak Called “The Doors”: A Conversation with John Densmore
James Penner interviews John Densmore, drummer for the Doors.
The Psychedelic Genesis of the Doors: A Conversation with Robby Krieger
James Penner speaks with Robby Krieger, the guitarist for the Doors.
Making the Ugly Beautiful: A Conversation with Obed Silva
The author discusses his debut memoir, “The Death of My Father the Pope.”
The Untold Story of the CIA’s MK Ultra: A Conversation with Stephen Kinzer
Stephen Kinzer discusses his new biography, “Poisoner in Chief: Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA Search for Mind Control.”
The Anatomy of the LSD Romance in the 1970s: On Errol Morris’s “My Psychedelic Love Story”
James Penner analyzes the life and times of Joanna Harcourt-Smith and Errol Morris’s recent film about her, “My Psychedelic Love Story.”
Psychedelic Pioneer and Confidence Man
A new biography of Michael Hollingshead, the man who turned Timothy Leary on.
Tackling Three-Letter Words — LSD, Sex, and God: An Interview with T. C. Boyle
T. C. Boyle dives down the rabbit hole of sex, drugs, and God in his interview with James Penner.
Blowing the Philosopher’s Fuses: Michel Foucault’s LSD Trip in the Valley of Death
James Penner takes a trip through “Foucault in California” by Simeon Wade, which chronicles the day when a great French philosopher blew his mind.
“Outside Looking In”: T. C. Boyle’s Drama of Expanded Consciousness and LSD
T. C. Boyle's "Outside Looking In" highlights the sober experience of coming back to reality when the trip is over.
A Guide for Psychedelic Virgins and Skeptics?
The publication of "How to Change Your Mind" in 2018 is one of many indications that we are witnessing a cultural sea change with regard to psychedelics.
Resuscitating the Psychedelic Sensibility
Jon Savage’s "1966" looks at a pivotal year in history via its music.
David Bowie and the 1970s: Testing the Limits of the Gendered Body
David Bowie and the 1970s: Testing the Limits of the Gendered Body
The Rise and Fall of LSD
The history of LSD in the United States, and its strange path from legitimacy to illegitimacy, is a fascinating tale that needs to be better understood.
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202311Acrobat.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202301The-Seekers.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202212Doors.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202204obedsilva.png)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202105KennerPrideauxKinzer.png)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202101PennerPsychedelic.png)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F202002divinerascal.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F201907PennerBoyle-3.png)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F201906foucaultincalifornia.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F20190441K8N307SjL._SY346_.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F201807howtochangeyourmind.jpg)
:quality(75)/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.lareviewofbooks.org%2Fuploads%2F2016071966.jpg)