The Observer, in short

Lead article Carmen Musat takes the Romanian press to task. Partisanship in reportorial space, character assassination by implication and a tendency to spread conspiracy theories spell (unhealthy) symbiosis with the political class. Politics Bedros Horasangian looks at the run up to the U.S. elections. Ciprian Ciucu sounds off on the much protested tax for registering new vehicles. Anniversary The Observer celebrates Mircea Horia Simionescu’s 80th birthday. Simionescu is a writer of the Tirgoviste school whose work began to appear in the 1970’s. Mihai Sorades praises the ironic writer’s encyclopedic vocation. Carmen Musat writes that the Tirgoviste school emphasized the aesthetic in opposition to the social-political, which has given its work lasting value. Paul Cernat reads Simionescu’s most recent work Virstele (The Ages, Tirgoviste: Bibliotheca Publishing, 2007). Luiza Palanciuc focuses on Simionescu’s style and narrative techniques. Bianca Burta-Cernat dismisses the generally accepted idea that Simionescu is a precursor of Romanian postmodernism. Finally, The Observer offers an interview with Simionescu by Ovidiu Simonca. Book reviews