This year, I’m delighted that Chris of Calmgrove, an Arthurian scholar and frequent Witch Week contributor, agreed to give his personal perspective on Arthurian literature, a genre that has sometimes annoyed him with its forays into bad history and bad fiction — but has also given him much pleasure, especially in the more adventurous “freestyle” […]
…Witch Week, when there is so much magic around in the world that all sorts of peculiar things happen… —from Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones Welcome to the fourth annual Witch Week, an opportunity to celebrate our favorite fantasy books and authors. This year we’re focusing on the theme Dreams of Arthur, and I […]
And this I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world. And this I would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this I must fight against: any idea, religion, or government which limits or destroys the […]
This is just a quick note to say that Witch Week is almost here! The guest posts are in place, giveaway widgets ready to go, and I’m working on the discussion post. Please come back for the complete schedule and master post on October 30. Will you read and/or post about something special for the […]
When I was growing up, I almost exclusively read fantasy. C.S. Lewis, George MacDonald, L. Frank Baum, Lewis Carroll, Ursula LeGuin, Madeleine L’Engle, E. Nesbit were the writers I read again and again, devouring every one of their books. In my teen years I idolized Robin McKinley, and became passionate about Diana Wynne Jones. Well […]
“Nonsense” is often used as a perjorative term, yet breaking out of our usual habits to use language and ideas in a fresh, imaginative way is so important for keeping us inwardly alive and creative. Nonsense stories and poems are wonderful to share with children, who love their wacky humor, but adults can benefit from […]
Barbara Pym, Excellent Women (1952) As I read Excellent Women, the best-known work by the once-neglected, now widely praised English novelist Barbara Pym, I was reminded of another acclaimed comic novel that I read not long ago: Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis. On the surface, Amis’s hard-drinking, buffoonish misogynist Jim Dixon may seem to have […]
What, is it time for a Mount TBR checkpoint again already? With three months to go, I’ve gotten through just over half of my original list of 60 books. So I know I’m not going to make my goal, but hey, look at all these books I did read! 33 is not too bad. I’ll […]
As more dreadful and inconceivably cruel events confront us in the news, reading and blogging increasingly feel like whistling in the dark. Is this pursuit too frivolous to continue? What good does it do, in times such as these? I can’t answer for you, but it still does do me good. A powerful post from […]
Nonfiction Book Swap Sign-Ups In my preview post for Nonfiction November, I forgot to include the link for the awesome book swap hosted by Katie from Doing Dewey. Read on for details… This year, we’ll also be bringing back the nonfiction book swap! If you sign up for this swap, you’re committing to sending your […]