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The 1.6.13 Issue

GEORGE SAUNDERS

This line from George Saunders resonated with me most: “What a powerful thing to know: that one’s own desires are mappable onto strangers.” If we could really live that insight, the world would be better — to see the great, often unbridgeable distance between yourself and “the other” turn into a roadway paved with understanding. To recognize, despite the difference, or maybe because of it, some common humanity between us. What a marvelous profile. Made me take “Pastoralia” off my bookshelf and start reading again. KATHLEEN B. JONES, PH.D., Bristol, England, posted on nytimes.com

The literary history of Syracuse, N.Y., is more important than most readers realize. Joel Lovell beautifully portrays one of Syracuse’s most original fiction writers. Illuminating is Lovell’s exploration of Saunders’s ties to David Foster Wallace. Pointing to a basement apartment, Saunders is quoted as saying: “That’s where Dave wrote ‘Infinite Jest.’ There should be a plaque there.” But while Wallace wrote with exceptional lucidity in Syracuse, according to D. T. Max’s recent biography, most of the novel was drafted in Boston. Would Wallace have agreed to any markings of his time in a place he called “Drearacuse,” the gray-lit center of heartbreak for him, a place from which he so often sought escape? MICHAEL PAUL THOMAS, Asst. Dean, Wayne D. McMurray School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Monmouth University, West Long Branch, N.J.

FORGIVENESS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE?

This is a tragic story of two young lives — one shot to death, the other sentenced to a long prison term. What makes it even more tragic is that it never needed to happen. Had Conor McBride not had easy access to a gun in his parents’ home, he would not be in prison, and Ann Grosmaire would be alive and able to look forward to a career and a family. What better example is there for stricter gun laws? ANNE E. CITRON, Beverly Hills, Calif.

By his own admission, McBride hit Grosmaire several times during their relationship; each time, Grosmaire clearly “forgave” him enough to stay. Restorative justice potentially allows the cycle of abuse and forgiveness that fuels domestic violence to enter the courtroom. While I do not doubt the sincerity of the Grosmaires’ forgiveness of McBride, nor begrudge them the peace they have found, I cannot agree that their feelings have a place in the justice system. ELSPETH GREEN, Princeton, N.J

‘BE WRONG AS FAST AS YOU CAN’

I’m a metal artist with great ideas, but I’m trapped by easy success at making silver jewelry. My days start with fabulous concepts swirling in my head but are spent making fattening breakfasts, carrying in firewood and taking afternoon naps. Yesterday at the Met, I saw photos of Matisse’s paintings as they “evolved.” He would continually paint over his female figures — one day slumped, the next erect; the face articulated, then later a squiggle as if by a second-grader. They were “mistakes” leading to what I thought were simple sketches but now see as refinements. He was being wrong as fast as he could. Now I sit, having read Hugo Lindgren’s essay (it was easier than making a fattening breakfast). A personal sea change has occurred. I wish I could convey my thanks, but the only way to do that is with my paintbrushes or carving chisels or torches. Just as soon as I get this smoky bacon into that iron skillet. TOM BURNS, Westminster, Vt.

THERE’S MORE THAN ONE WAY TO SKIN A POTATO

There’s no knish in this list. I call shenanigans. @srubenfeld, via Twitter

A version of this article appears in print on  , Page 12 of the Sunday Magazine with the headline: The 1.6.13 Issue. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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