We haven’t seen student protests like those now underway on the campuses around North America since the American military was dropping bombs, napalm and agent orange on the Vietnamese. Fair enough, it is difficult to watch the brutal attack on Gaza without wanting to run around waving Palestinians flags and calling for an end to …
THE SECRET CHORD BY GERALDINE BROOKS
THE SECRET CHORD BY GERALDINE BROOKS, Viking, 2015 - In essence, The Secret Chord is a fictionalized account of the life of King David from the viewpoint of Nathan -in this book David’s counselor and prophet. The Old Testament, with its vengeful, hairy thundering god is a tough sell for me at the best of …
NEWS FROM ‘MURICA
Collapsing bridges, continued mass shootings, abortion laws from the 1800’s revived… MEH! What’s happening with the GHIT? Yes, nobody cares about much except following the best continuing entertainment show in ‘Murica. I speak of the world’s greatest comedian, the one and only Ronald Rump (former PREZ and Grand High Imperial Twitterbug), who is attempting to …
HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN BY LOUISE PENNY
How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny, 2013, Three Pines Creations - The Inspector Gamache series was recommended to me some years back by my friend Peach and, since then, I’ve spent a few enjoyable hours with Louise Penny’s sleuth. It’s a popular series with ‘How the Light Gets In’ the ninth in what …
AT THE COFFEE SHOP OF CURIOSITIES BY HEATHER WEBBER
At The Coffee Shop of Curiosities by Heather Webber - Tor Publishing, 2023 - In reading contemporary fiction, I was coming to the conclusion that dystopias, crime, murder and mayhem were the only things on the menu - obviously far easier for writers to imagine than utopian bliss. It appears now that I wasn’t reading …
Continue reading AT THE COFFEE SHOP OF CURIOSITIES BY HEATHER WEBBER
WARLIGHT BY MICHAEL ONDAATJE
Warlight by Michael Ondaatje - McClelland & Stewart, 2018 - If you have fond memories of ‘The English Patient’ you will likely enjoy this book by Ondaatje. It’s written in the style of a memoir with the main character, Nathaniel Williams (called Stitch by Rose, his mother), reflecting on his life when he was a …
A FIELD GUIDE TO ‘MURICA’S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
Heading into the fall, ‘Murica is now facing a Prez election - a prospect that has voters in the country headed off in droves to their favorite watering holes to kick back a few brewskies. In fact, a large part of the electorate is hoping the ballot will offer a box with ‘Neither Candidate’ in …
Continue reading A FIELD GUIDE TO ‘MURICA’S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
MOVIES FROM THE UK – AN ODD COUPLE
The Duke - 2020 Netflix based on a true story from the 1960's and The Bank of Dave - 2023 Netflix based on a ‘true-ish’ story from the 2010’s England has a long tradition of eccentric nonconformists and their stories are often as entertaining as the characters are colorful. These aren’t the kind of nitwits …
NEWS THAT ALABAMA RECOGNIZES FROZEN EMBRYOS AS CHILDREN
Alabama’s Supreme Court has now declared frozen sand grains to be viable children. In their ruling, the Alabama Court cited the Bible, (Matthew 16:18) in which Jesus says: ‘Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church;’ The Chief Justice asserted that their ruling was a natural progression. Since Peter was a …
Continue reading NEWS THAT ALABAMA RECOGNIZES FROZEN EMBRYOS AS CHILDREN
WONKA – THE MOVIE
Wonka - 2023 on Amazon Prime Wonka is a ‘prequel’ to Roald Dahl’s classic ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. Directed by Paul King, it stars Timothée Chalamet as the young Willy Wonka, full of ambition and ready to make his mark in the world. Arriving in the big city with dreams of starting his own …
Richard's Left Bank 