Mary Daniels Brown

My mother always insisted that, as soon as I was old enough to sit up, she’d find me in my crib after my nap babbling away, with a Little Golden Book on my lap. I’ve had my nose in a book ever since. I grew up in a small town, with the tiny town library literally in my backyard. As an only child in an unhappy home, I found comfort and companionship in books. As an adult I wanted to be Harry Potter, although I admit I’m more Hermione. My life has been a series of research projects. Reading has taught me that human lives are deliciously messy and that “it’s complicated” isn’t a punchline.

Monday Miscellany

Homeless Outreach in Volumes: Books by Bike for ‘Outside’ People in Oregon This city [Portland, Oregon] has a deeply dyed liberal impulse beating in its veins around social and environmental causes, and a literary culture that has flourished like the blackberry thickets that mark misty Northwest woods. It is also one of the most bike-friendly, […]

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“Little Heathens” by Mildred A. Kalish

Kalish, Mildred Armstrong. Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression  Bantam Books, 2007 Some time around 1930, when the author was “little more than five years old” (p. 6), she, her mother, her baby sister, and her two brothers went to live with her mother’s parents in

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Patrick Modiano Wins Nobel Prize in Literature – NYTimes.com

Patrick Modiano, the French novelist whose works often explore the traumas of the Nazi occupation of France and hinge on the themes of memory, loss and the puzzle of identity, won the 2014 Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday. In an announcement in Stockholm, the Swedish Academy cited Mr. Modiano’s ability to evoke “the most

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The Classics Club

Gothic Elements in Shirley Jackson’s “We Have Always Lived in the Castle”

Gothic literature features characteristics such as magic, mystery, chivalry, horror, clanking chains, ghosts, and dark castles to create a spooky atmosphere rife with foreboding and possibility. Over time Gothic emphasis changed from reliance on these external trappings for their own sake to a focus on the inner workings of the human psyche that the Gothic

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bookshelves: Literature and Psychology

Life Stories

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bookshelves: Literature and Psychology

Literary Life Stories: The Character Biography

  Related Posts: Introduction to Life Stories “Before I Go to Sleep,” S.J. Watson: We Are What We Remember Life Stories: The Personal Component 11 Novels That Feature Life Stories Must We Like Fictional Characters? “Mr. Mercedes” by Stephen King: The Power of Characters Although the concept of life story originated in the field of

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5 Under 35 Honorees Announced

BuzzFeed Books is honored to celebrate the fantastic young writers of the National Book Foundation’s 9th annual 5 Under 35, chosen by past winners and finalists of the National Book Awards. “The National Book Foundation’s 5 under 35 program is about supporting a rising generation of talented authors,” said Leslie Shipman, Assistant Director of the

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AP News : Bestselling book banned from middle schools

RIVERSIDE, Calif. AP – The bestselling book “The Fault in Our Stars,” narrated by a 16-year-old cancer patient, has been banned from Riverside Unified School District middle schools over sexual content, but it is still allowed in high schools. via AP News : Bestselling book banned from middle schools. Some news appropriate for Banned Books

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Celebrate Banned Books Week!

September 21–27, 2014 Celebrate Banned Books Week! Read something outrageous!   Buzzfeed has some suggestions for you here. Read more about Banned Books Week from the American Library Association.

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Monday Miscellany

INFOGRAPHIC: How Long Does It Take to Read Popular Books? For visually oriented readers: Ever wondered how long it takes to read The Great Gatsby (2.62 hours) compared to Atlas Shrugged (31.22 hours)? If so, you’ll like this infographic by Personal Creations. William Golding Flies classic holds true 60 years on It’s 60 years this

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