Lately, I've very much been appreciating the short book. In fact, I have tentatively come to the conclusion that a novel's perfect length is between 250 and 350 pages. It's not that I don't love big, fat, epic novels. In fact, I count several of them among my favorite reads: Lonesome Dove; The Passage trilogy; Anathem; The Stand and It. Perhaps … Continue reading In praise of short books…
Lately, I have been turning to older novels for my reading, as a means of escape from the stresses of being alive, here, in 2017. Older books offer a unique form of immersion in another time and place, as actually lived by the writer, rather than as imagined by a writer conjuring up a historical time … Continue reading Retreating into reading: The refuge of older books
The Women's March was truly inspiring. I took part in my own small way. Our small North Carolina town had 1,500 people turn out. I was gobsmacked, because we are just not that big a town. There were 17,000 people marching in Raleigh. Here are some wonderful photos of the marchers around the world. What … Continue reading Inspirations…
The Women's March on Washington is what is inspiring me right now. It started out as just an idea following on the surprising election results and has now grown, grassroots-style, into the largest protest and demonstration to take place in response to the inauguration. The march is for everyone, regardless of gender identity, who believes … Continue reading Inspirations…
Author Susan Hill delves into why we love scary books, especially as the weather gets colder, and recommends some classic ghost stories in this piece in the Guardian.
The fact that so many books on this list are already favorites explains why I so quickly became a rabid Stranger Things fan. Check it out: Finished binging Netflix's Stranger Things? Pick up these 12 books next | The Verge
Recently, I attended a panel discussion of local writers on something entirely unrelated when one of them said something that confirmed a suspicion I already had. He said that an editor had actually asked him to shove 10,000 more words into his manuscript. Apparently, long books look more substantial on bookstore shelves, so I guess it … Continue reading Literary elephantiasis…
I have posted a survey of feminist dystopian visions. I hope you enjoy.
I have have posted a survey of feminist utopian visions. Hope you enjoy.
I promise that this is the absolute last reading list I will post. Ha ha, no. What if you are starting your reading completely from scratch? What should you read to have a good foundation on which your future reading will rest? What are those books that sparked legions of imitators and inserted themselves permanently … Continue reading A foundational reading list…
