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FRIDAY
Ben Greenman is part of the new writing breed. You know, those tireless self-promoters who slick down every word they pen for the McSweeney’s Web site with a heavy coat of irony. But young people, don’t be gettin’ all high, mighty, and backlashy on me. More than a purveyor of snark, Greenman showed in his 2001 fiction collection Superbad that he’s a confident stylist and an often stunningly innovative wit. Take “Blurbs”: “The central conceita humor piece composed entirely of blurbs about that humor piecereads like a mobius strip tied around Jorge Luis Borges’s finger.” Superworse, the paperback rereleaseer, “remix”of Superbad, is ostensibly the project of Greenman’s fictitious editor Laurence Onge, whose prickly prose appears in the book’s foreword, midword, and afterword. These mildly critical passages are mostly forgettable, and the “remix” consists of a few positional swaps, the removal of short plays such as Microsoft! The Musical, and the addition of a few new pieces such as “Sometree, Anytree,” a love story about two trees who get “entwigged.” Greenman’s best piece, though, remains “What 100 People, Real and Fake, Believe About Dolores,” a Superbad holdover that hauntingly documents a doomed relationship via observations from friends, loved ones, and Popeye. Greenman promotes himself and his enjoyable book at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, at Olsson’s Books & Records, 1307 19th St. NW. Free. (202) 785-1133. (Josh Levin)