iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Excited to start my UC Davis grad seminar, "In the Shadow of the Rock: The Literature of Gibraltar," tomorrow. This will be one of the first seminars on this topic offered anywhere in the world - unless there's an academic underground of GibLit seminars that I don't know about! #academicsky #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

What musician/band from your youth did you discover long after the fact? It's bittersweet knowing you would have loved a great band when you were 15, but now you can't have that experience. But still, you're happy to have discovered them at all. Personal examples: Swervedriver, Jawbox. #musicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

It’s Lake Ontario. And unless you grew up on or near the lake - maybe risking your health by swimming in it - I’m not interested in your proposals to rename it.

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

How did it take me this long to do a @protomartyr.bsky.social deep dive? I’ve loved “Processed by the Boys” for a while, but the whole catalog is great, and deserves a listen. #musicsky

m.youtube.com

For Tomorrow

YouTube video by protomartyr - Topic

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Many people dress for what they'd rather do, rather than what they have to do. Examples: business travelers in airports wearing golf gear, earth science professors on campus, wearing hiking gear, hunters wearing camo in non-camo places, me wearing my professor outfit when I have to go to the store.

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Charlotte Lydia Riley @lottelydia.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

senior male academics giving a conference paper, after being shown the "one more minute" sign

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

New publication with Silvia Bermúdez (UC Santa Barbara): "Iberian Studies in the Golden State: the UC Comparative Iberian Studies Working Group," published in "Mapping Iberian Studies" (ed. Santiago Pérez Isasi, Esther Gimeno Ugalde & Mario Santana, Brill, 2026). Out now!

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

Recently, I had a long drive down to/back from UC Irvine. I spent a lot of the time listening to Bruce Springsteen's first five albums (I'd already listened to "Nebraska" all the way through). Of the first six, "Darkness on the Edge of Town" is clearly my favorite. What a piece of work. #musicsky

youtube.com

Adam Raised a Cain

YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen - Topic

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

Excited to participate in the UC Iberian Studies Consortium's 2026 event at UC Irvine, May 7-8. My talk will be "Punks in the Labyrinth: National Absence in Early Portuguese Punk Rock." #academicsky #musicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Angel Dust’s new album is so, so good. Recommended if you’re into Drug Church, Fiddlehead, etc., or like your high-energy rock music to have some bounce and groove. Here’s the first song: #musicsky

m.youtube.com

Pain Is A Must

YouTube video by Angel Du$t - Topic

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

A victory for democracy anywhere is a victory for democracy everywhere. Congratulations, Hungary!🇭🇺🇭🇺🇭🇺

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Join me tomorrow (Thursday, April 9) for a bilingual conversation with the Gibraltar poet Gabriel Moreno and translator/publisher Rafael Peñas Cruz, on Gabriel's bilingual English/Spanish anthology "Gibraltar"! #booksky #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Join me on Thursday, April 9 for a conversation with the Gibraltar poet Gabriel Moreno and translator/publisher Rafael Peñas Cruz, on Gabriel's bilingual English/Spanish anthology "Gibraltar." #booksky #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

Looking forward to teaching my UC Davis course on Latin American lit in translation, starting next week. We're focusing on the greater Caribbean, and reading Carpentier, Ferré, Pauline Melville, Danticat, Rita Indiana, Kei Miller, Fernanda Melchor, and Jaquira Díaz. #booksky #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Just finished María Esquinca's beautiful collection "Where Heaven Sinks." Esquinca is a very talented poet, and her depictions of El Paso and the US-Mexican border are gorgeous, heartbreaking, and humane. I especially loved "We Made a Kingdom from Trash." #booksky unpress.nevada.edu/978164779218...

unpress.nevada.edu

Where Heaven Sinks

2024 Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize Winner! María Esquinca delivers a searing collection of poems that traverse borders—both physical and emotional. Set ag...

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

I've just published a series of translated newspaper pieces by the great Brazilian writer Machado de Assis (1839-1908). They deal with one of his favorite literary motifs - the donkey - and touch on slavery, greed, modernization, and as always, human folly. Open access. #academicsky

jls.apsa.us

View of The The Spitting Image of a Man

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Join the Mediterranean Studies forum at #mla2027 in LA! Proposals for both sessions are due March 15. #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

I loved Walter Kempowski's novel "All for Nothing" and I'm now really enjoying "Marrow and Bone." Next up is "An Ordinary Youth." Looking for recommendations of similar German fiction available in English translation, or of novels about displacement and empire's physical remains. #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

Excellent song by the band MAQUINA., from Lisbon. For fans of krautrock, noise, and Primal Scream's "XTRMNTR." // Excelente canção da banda lisboeta MAQUINA. Recomendo para fãs de krautrock, noise, e "XTRMNTR" de Primal Scream. www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqYX... #musicsky

youtube.com

body control

YouTube video by MAQUINA. - Topic

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S.J. Pearce @homophonous.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

For absolutely no reason whatsoever, I want to recommend this book, An American Language: The History of Spanish in the United States by Rosina Lozano. www.ucpress.edu/books/an-ame...

ucpress.edu

An American Language by Rosina Lozano - Paper

Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 04/02/2026

Just finished reading Fernanda Melchor’s “This Is Not Miami.” Excellent collection, very much complementary reading to her novels. Melchor is one of my favorite young(-ish) writers, and her depictions of Veracruz are electrifying. #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

This is the university library at KU Leuven (Belgium). It was destroyed during World War I. US universities and schools funded its reconstruction. I saw their names carved into the facade when I visited last month. I want to believe that gestures like this are still possible. #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

Just finished Brandon Hobson’s ”The Removed.” One of the best new-ish novels I’ve read in a while. Recommended. #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

Looking forward to presenting on Tuesday, January 13 at #KULeuven and the Centre for Global Governance Studies on "Sovereignty and Iberian National Literatures: Comparing Catalonia and Portugal." #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Drove into Canada today for #MLA2026 in Toronto and the minute I crossed the border the "Kids in the Hall" theme popped into my head. Couldn't be helped.

youtube.com

Kids In The Hall intro theme song by Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet

YouTube video by marcjamesb

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

I mostly listened to old reggae and dub in 2025. But I did listen to some new songs. Favorites: Crush Your Soul, Living Gracious Die Spitz, Pop Punk Anthem Suede, Dancing With the Europeans Nothing, Cannibal World Real Daze, Shulgin Sharon Van Etten, Live Forever Mil-Spec, When the Music Ends 6.52

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UC Davis @ucdavis.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

UC Davis tied for No. 9 among the nation’s top public universities and earned accolades for innovation, social mobility and more in the 2026 U.S. News Best Colleges rankings. This is the 5th consecutive year the campus has been ranked among the top 10 public universities: ucdav.is/46Pv7qx

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

Rereading “Nostromo.” From a Latin Americanist perspective, it seems preoccupied with the binarisms of the day (Latin/Anglo-Saxon, North/South America), partly recalling writers like Rodó - despite Conrad’s stereotyping and second-hand knowledge. A Latin Americanist novel? #booksky #academicsky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 30/06/2025

Just finished Dan Flores’s “Coyote America.” The coyote is impressive for so many reasons, not least of which is that it’s prospered and expanded its range immensely despite all attempts to destroy it. Coming to a North American city near you, if not there already! #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 15/06/2025

Just finished Kei Miller's novel "Augustown." A really nice novel about historical repetition and cyclical injustice and resistance in contemporary Jamaica. Despite the narrator's assertion that it's not a magical realist novel, it compares with Alejo Carpentier's "El reino de este mundo." #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 05/06/2025

Finishing up Wilson Harris's hallucinatory, occasionally maddening novel "Palace of the Peacock." An account of a hellish journey upriver in Guyana, it doubles as a lament for and denunciation of colonialism. Worth a look for readers of Joseph Conrad, Alejo Carpentier, and Juan Rulfo. #booksky

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

'The author of Girl, Woman, Other and Mr Loverman has been rewarded for her entire body of work, as well as her “transformative impact on literature and her unwavering dedication to uplifting under-represented voices across the cultural landscape”.' Kudos richly merited.

theguardian.com

Bernardine Evaristo scoops Women’s prize outstanding contribution award

One-off £100,000 prize awarded to Girl, Women, Other writer for entire body of work and ‘dedication to uplifting under-represented voices’

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 01/06/2025

The UC Iberian Studies Consortium just started a listserv. University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) faculty interested in Iberian Studies are welcome to join. Email me at rpnewcomb@ucdavis.edu if interested.

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 18/04/2025

Planning to teach a seminar next year on Latin American literature in translation, focusing on three countries that are “peripheral” to Latin America: Brazil, Jamaica, & Haiti. I’d appreciate any recommendations of scholars of Jamaican or Haitian literature. I have questions! #academicsky #booksky

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

If no one has done this yet, someone should write a paper on the circulation of William DeVaughn‘s song “Be Thankful for What You Got” (1974) between the US, Jamaica, and the UK (via Massive Attack) as an example of cultural exchange across the Black Atlantic.

m.youtube.com

Bunny Clarke - Be Thankful

YouTube video by Roots and Message

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Deirdre Kelly @deirdremkelly.bsky.social · 26/03/2025

Delighted to see 'Strategies for Writing Gibraltar into the World'! Congratulations to guest editor, @rpnewcomb.bsky.social, contributors: Edwige Tamalet Talbayev, David Álvarez + José Juan Yborra Aznar. @antonpujol.bsky.social @acis46.bsky.social intellectdiscover.com/content/journals/ijis/38/1

intellectdiscover.com

Strategies for Writing Gibraltar into the World | Intellect

Intellect Discover is the platform where Intellect's content lives: Browse publications for scholars and practitioners teaching and researching in the arts, media and creative industries.

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Pleased to announce that the new issue of the International Journal of Iberian Studies features a dossier, "Strategies for Writing Gibraltar into the World," which I edited. It features articles on Gibraltarian literature by me, David Alvarez, José Juan Yborra Aznar, and Edwige Tamalet Talbayev.

intellectdiscover.com

International Journal of Iberian Studies | Intellect

The International Journal of Iberian Studies (IJIS) is the academic journal for scholars from around the world whose research focuses on contemporary Spain and Portugal from a range of disciplinary pe...

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 07/03/2025

My translation of the great, dearly missed Alfredo Bosi's "An Ideological Knot - On Interlaced Perspectives in Machado de Assis" has been published in a special issue of Santa Barbara Portuguese Studies dedicated to Bosi, a major Brazilian literary and cultural critic.

sbps.spanport.ucsb.edu

Volume 11 | Santa Barbara Portuguese Studies - UC Santa Barbara

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

The United States are, have been, and will be a multilingual country, whether or not it has an “official” language. // EEUU son, han sido, y serán país plurilingüe, teniendo o no lengua “oficial.”

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

Compiling a list of non-current books that uncannily help explain the current political moment. I nominate Joseph Conrad’s “The Secret Agent.” Share your picks and thoughts in the comments. #booksky

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ACIS-Association for Contemporary Iberian Studies @acis47.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

'An Interview with Cristina Martins' by Robert Newcomb on the Mirandese language. Fascinating! Both Robert Newcomb and Cristina Martins were keynote speakers at the 44th ACIS Conference in Porto back in 2023 🗣 ➡️ escholarship.org/content/qt93...

escholarship.org

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Really enjoying Ava Mendoza’s “The Circular Train”: dazzling solo guitar and occasional vocals. Sounds like it belongs on a Jim Jarmusch soundtrack. Thanks to KDVS for yet another recommendation.

m.youtube.com

Pink River Dolphins

YouTube video by Ava Mendoza - Topic

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Robert Patrick Newcomb @rpnewcomb.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

What Camus’s “The Plague” was for the early Covid years, Joseph Conrad’s “The Secret Agent” should be for our current moment. It has domestic extremism, political bad actors, a diffuse fear of foreigners, gaslighting, and a tenacious desire to get at the truth. Read it. #booksky

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