The Elegant Variation chats with David Ulin, the new editor of the LA Times book review.

TEV: So what’s your first order of business when you get yourself settled in?

DU: It’s difficult to talk in terms of specifics having not yet begun the job. But the broad answer is this: I want to rethink the notion of a Book Review, to consider how such a section needs to position itself in a world where literature is often marginalized. What is the nature of reading and writing? How are they relevant? And how do we integrate them into our lives? In the most basic sense, this means considering a more diverse range of work for the section, both in terms of the kinds of books that get covered, and the types of writing we showcase. I’d hope, for instance, to see more non-review material – essays, overviews, think pieces – and certainly, there will be a more consistent balance between fiction and nonfiction from week to week. But also, I’d like to take on a wide array of ideas and aesthetics, from traditional literature and scholarship to new media and electronic arts…

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