Literature

The Sort of Men We Need 6
- Culture, Literature
- February 20, 2024
A new book by Mark Helprin is like a surprise gift from St. Nick, so when I spotted The Oceans and the Stars: A Sea Story, a War Story, a Love Story on the “New Book” shelf of my public library, I snagged that gift, headed for the checkout desk, and opened it as soon
READ MORE
Dostoevsky and American Despair: The Penalty of Nihilism 3
- Literature, Philosophy
- February 1, 2024
These chilling words, ringing with despair, come from one of the most striking characters in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s 1866 novel Crime and Punishment, Arkady Ivanovich Svidrigailov: We always imagine eternity as something beyond our conception, something vast, vast! But why must it be vast? Instead of all that, what if it’s one little room, like a
READ MORE
Poetry in Prose: The Genius of J.R.R. Tolkien 1
- Literature, Featured
- January 22, 2024
Young John Ronald Reuel Tolkien curled up with his favorite book, reading the tale of Sigurd who slew the dragon Fafnir. Schooled at home, Tolkien’s widowed mother taught him Latin and French and grammar, explaining that “green great dragon” was incorrect—it should be “great green dragon.” Tolkien wanted to know why. Language fascinated him. After
READ MORE

How Quitting a Book Can Be Great for Reading 10
- Literature
- January 17, 2024
I’ve written extensively about the value of reading good books, especially old ones, but I’ve never written about the need to quit books. Yet while there are many good reasons to read books that have stood the test of time, there’s also something to be said for putting a book down. As paradoxical as it
READ MORE
The Classic Poem That Helped Inspire the ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel 0
- Featured, Entertainment, Literature
- January 4, 2024
One of cinema’s most popular characters is based on a haunting 1799 poem by English Romantic poet William Wordsworth. The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes was a movie released in November and based on the novel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins. Both book and film are prequels to
READ MORE
‘To Make an End Is to Make a Beginning’: Verses for the New Year 3
- Literature, Featured
- December 28, 2023
Christmas brings us a feast of words and music: songs played 24/7 on some radio stations, classic literature like A Christmas Carol and “A Visit From St. Nicholas,” a stocking full of new children’s books every year along with the classics like How the Grinch Stole Christmas, films enough to watch every day from Advent
READ MORE