For our next entry of this new weekly series, we are introducing Jesse Drake. Drake is one of our new political bloggers under his title, There is Power in a Rant.
Jesse’s Bio:
Jesse is a senior English major with minors in political science and peace studies. He currently lives on campus but is originally from northeast Indiana. Jesse plans on staying in the Chicago area for his gap year before attending law school. Thanks to a combination of inspiring yet challenging English teachers and exposure to the culture of a small Rust Belt town, Jesse focuses his writing on working-class issues, political rhetoric, and inequality. He also enjoys craft beer and spicy food.
Below is our Q&A with Jesse:
-Who are you and what is your role in the Jet Fuel Review?
I am a Political blogger for the Jet Fuel Review blog.
-What book might we find on your nightstand right now?
The Dog of the South by Charles Portis
-If you had the chance to co-write with one author, who would you choose? Why?
Nathan J. Robinson, a leftist political writer, and editor of the magazine Current Affairs. He is an intellectual in every way, from his insights to tone of voice to his style of dress, yet hardly appears snobby or standoffish, so I believe I would learn a lot from him.
-Describe your perfect reading atmosphere.
A well-cushioned (but not overly cushioned) chair with a long straight back, a small dimly lit room with a single bright lamp on, and some sort of instrumental music on vinyl playing in the corner. This is, coincidentally, what my bedroom looks like.
-What might your personal library look like?
It wouldn’t be too big, maybe just 3 or 4 full-sized bookcases, with half fiction and poetry and the other half a mix of political theory, memoirs, biographies and history books.
-If you could “re-make” a poorly written movie that was based on a book, what movie would it be?
Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
-What piece of literature can you reread over and over again?
The Conquest of Bread by Peter Kropotkin
-Give us a quote from your favorite (or any) book/movie.
“Everyone struggles against despair, but it always wins in the end. It has to. It’s the only thing that lets us say goodbye” — Jeffrey Eugenides, Middlesex
-If you were invited to have coffee with any fictional character, who would you most like to meet? Why?
John Irving has a lot of pleasant characters that would make for good coffee conversation. Garp from The World According to Garp is a passionate and emotional person who would likely talk my ear off, while Homer Wells from The Cider House Rules would be intrigued by the worldview of others, while also not being too judgemental.
-Share your top five favorite pieces of writing (anything included, be it movies, books, etc.).
- The Stranger by Albert Camus
- “somewhere I have never traveled, gladly beyond” by E. E. Cummings
- Paris, Texas directed by Wim Wenders
- No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
- Native Son by Richard Wright