“All my life, I have fought against white domination and black domination, and cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society. It is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.” —Nelson Mandela, 20 April 1964 Today I visited the prison where Mandela was held until 1990. We were led in a tour... Continue Reading →
Well, I'm reporting about a book I did not finish. I used to finish every. single. book. I ever read, but about 10 years ago I gave up on that. If the book doesn't speak to me after about 50 pages, I'm out. I gave this book 64 pages. And then I gave up. The... Continue Reading →
“People who buy books ... are of two kinds. There are those who buy because they love books and what they can get from them, and those to whom books are one form of entertainment among several. ... The second group has to be courted” (p. 117). . Which kind of book buyer are you?... Continue Reading →
I love reading Dorothy Whipple novels, and I wrote my Master's thesis on her book The Priory (1939), but for some reason, I didn't remember They Were Sisters (1945) even though I read it a few years ago. Rereading it was a pleasure, and it reminded me why I enjoy forgotten mid-century women's fiction. Luckily... Continue Reading →
I've been pretty silent on social media lately, and on this blog. I used to speak up about current events, social practices, academic theory, morality, etc. But for the last two years, I haven't spoken up. I'm not sure why. There's a lot of discomfort within me because of this. After reading Rhetoric Retold: Regendering... Continue Reading →
The marriage of Celestial and Roy is mediated by bars: prison bars. They are a young black couple who is torn apart when Roy is falsely accused of rape (Celestial was with him when it was supposed to have happened) and he is sentenced to 12 years in prison. After he is incarcerated (a very... Continue Reading →
Although memoirs seem to have exploded in numbers over the last decade, and may be becoming tiresome as a genre, I personally enjoy them for the simple fact that they allow me to walk in somebody else’s shoes. I find ways to be empathetic and understanding and more educated on other political views, cultural customs,... Continue Reading →
When I began reading Bridget Jones's Diary (1996) by Helen Fielding and number 68 the BBC book list, I hated it. It is full of foul language, dirty references, and the seemingly pathetic life of an annoying heroine. I wanted to poke my eyeballs out rather than finish reading it, and I saw the movie... Continue Reading →
A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes (1988) by Stephen Hawking has been sitting on my nightstand for quite some time. Now that it is summer and I’m not taking any classes, I have been reading more books for pleasure (rather than by assignment), so this one finally got cracked... Continue Reading →
Robert at 101 Books (one of my favorite blogs) is currently reading All the King’s Men (1946) by Robert Penn Warren. Robert’s posts about the novel and his upcoming review of it have prompted me to remember my experiences with reading and writing about it. All the King’s Men won the Pulitzer Prize in 1947,... Continue Reading →
The Bookshelf of Emily J. 