Houman Barekat

Houman Barekat is a writer and critic based in London, and founding editor of Review 31. He reviews for The Guardian, Financial Times, The Irish Times, the Times Literary Supplement, The Spectator, The New Statesman, Literary Review, and The London Magazine. He is co-editor (with Robert Barry and David Winters) of The Digital Critic: Literary Culture Online (O/R Books, 2017).

Articles

Digital Immortality
Is online memory preservation a form of healthy grieving or digital necrophilia?
Houman BarekatJan 11, 2021
- Science & Technology
“No Demons Amongst Us”: On Simon Lancaster’s “You Are Not Human: How Words Kill”
Houman Barekat looks closely at “You Are Not Human: How Words Kill” by Simon Lancaster.
Houman BarekatJan 29, 2019
- Cultural Studies
- Politics
Get Lots of Happenings: On Mike Wendling’s “Alt-Right: From 4chan to the White House”
Houman Barekat considers “Alt-Right: From 4chan to the White House,” an analysis of far-right internet culture by Mike Wendling.
Houman BarekatSep 5, 2018
- History
- Politics
A Messiah-cum-Surrogate-Dad for Gormless Dimwits: On Jordan B. Peterson’s “12 Rules for Life”
Houman Barekat questions “12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos” by Jordan B. Peterson.
Houman BarekatMar 8, 2018
- Cultural Studies
- Philosophy & Religion
“Tiny Paragraphs Pulsed in His Veins”: On Johannes Urzidil’s “The Last Bell”
Houman Barekat is struck by “The Last Bell,” a collection of stories by German Bohemian writer Johannes Urzidil.
Houman BarekatDec 2, 2017
- Around the World
- Fiction
“The Emotion-Recollected-in-Tranquility Racket”: On J. D. Daniels’s “The Correspondence: Essays”
Houman Barekat journeys through “The Correspondence: Essays” by J. D. Daniels.
Houman BarekatJun 7, 2017
- Memoir & Essay
The Whole Point About War: On Lara Pawson’s “This Is the Place to Be”
Houman Barekat on journalist Lara Pawson's memoir, "This Is the Place to Be."
Houman BarekatFeb 27, 2017
Breaking Godwin’s Law: Stoddard Martin’s “Monstrous Century”
Houman Barekat appreciates the old-school rigor of “Monstrous Century: Essays in The Age of the Feuilleton” by Stoddard Martin.
Houman BarekatDec 8, 2016
Vulgar and Unsightly: Adrian Nathan West’s J’accuse Against Extremely Degrading Pornography
Houman Barekat delves into “The Aesthetics of Degradation” by Adrian Nathan West.
Houman BarekatOct 17, 2016
The Internet-y Novel
A cautionary tale of love and internet celebrity.
Houman BarekatJun 19, 2016
- Fiction
The Thief, The Friend, His Wife, and Her Lover
Adulterous prurience served cold.
Houman BarekatDec 24, 2015
- Fiction
Joseph Roth, “The Hotel Years”
Joseph Roth’s work is so intimately preoccupied with modernity that no account of the cultural history of the era would be complete without it.
Houman BarekatNov 12, 2015
Nabokov’s Geographies
Houman Barekat on Robert Roper's "Nabokov in America: On the Road to Lolita."
Houman BarekatSep 12, 2015
- Biography & Autobiography
Their Silver Lining: Nazi Genocide and Eastern Europe
Houman BarekatSep 13, 2012
Circulation Jerks: On the Book as Fetish Object
Houman BarekatAug 31, 2012
Everything Is Fluid
Houman BarekatAug 4, 2012
- Cultural Studies
- Literary Criticism