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

Here’s what caught my eye over the past week:  ‘I Am The Cheese’: A Nightmarish Nail-Biter: The most chilling book I’ve ever read is Robert Cormier’s I Am the Cheese. In this piece, which is almost as compelling as the novel itself, author Ben Marcus remembers how reading the book affected him as a 12-year-old […]

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2012 Orange Prize Goes to ‘The Song of Achilles’

2012 Orange Prize Goes to ‘The Song of Achilles’ Madeline Miller, the 8-1 outsider last night won the 2012 – and last – Orange Prize for Fiction with her debut novel The Song of Achilles (Bloomsbury), becoming the fourth American in a row to take home the £30,000 cheque and the bronze “Bessie” figurine, both

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JoyceWays: Ulysses iPod App | A Piece of Monologue: Literature, Philosophy, Criticism

JoyceWays: Ulysses iPod App | A Piece of Monologue: Literature, Philosophy, Criticism A James Joyce iPod app is scheduled for introduction at Dublin’s James Joyce Center on June 14, two days before Bloomsday: It’s six chapters from Ulysses; it’s twenty locations from Dubliners; it’s fifteen of Joycean hostelries. It’s got over 100 spots from Ulysses.

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55 years later, Kerouac novel finally is a movie

55 years later, Kerouac novel finally is a movie | The Columbia Daily Tribune – Columbia, Missouri Fifty-five years after its publication, Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road” finally is burning on the big screen. Marlon Brando, Jean-Luc Godard and Brad Pitt have all circled the classic 1957 novel over the past six decades, but Walter

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Monday Miscellany

This week’s link round-up: The 42 Best Lines from Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Series: I’m sorry that I missed Towel Day on May 25, the annual celebration of the life and work of Douglas Adams, but I’ve put it on the literary calendar so I won’t forget next year. In honor

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Photo: Do You Know How Long to Wash Your Hands?

Photo: Do You Know How Long to Wash Your Hands? Read More »

Kurt Vonnegut on How to Write a Good Story

Kurt Vonnegut narrates his eight tips on how to write a good story: Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for. Every character should want something, even if

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Photo of the Day: Snappy

Meet Snappy. On a recent bike ride my husband came upon this big snapping turtle on the sidewalk. After photographing him head-on, he tried to get a side view. But every time he moved to get a different perspective, Snappy moved, too, to maintain their face-off.

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‘Things Fall Apart’ named one of the world’s 50 Most Influential Books

‘Things Fall Apart’ named one of the world’s 50 Most Influential Books : Ghana Business News An academic group based in San Antonio, Texas, USA, calling itself SuperScholar, has listed prolific Nigerian writer, Chinua Achebe’s, bestseller, ‘Things Fall Apart’, now a movie with veteran Nigerian actor Pete Edoche starring as the lead character Obi Okonkwo,

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Monday Miscellany: Can Reading Fiction Make You a Better Person?

The answer is apparently yes. A study conducted at Ohio State University suggests that “When you ‘lose yourself’ inside the world of a fictional character while reading a story, you may actually end up changing your own behavior and thoughts to match that of the character.” Co-authors of the study are Geoff Kaufman, who led

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