A story of people becoming real
“Only connect.” Though that line from E.M. Forster’s Howard’s End refers to human love and passion, his words also seem…
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Still jazzy after all these years
I first discovered Lawrence Ferlinghetti in high school and his book Starting From San Francisco and have read everything he’s…
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Deserving books that may pique your interest
On the red wooden chair near my desk, 14 inches high, is a mound of books waiting for review. Three…
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A trip to the beach without leaving home
“Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever…
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When love is illuminated
Sarah Hall, born in the Lake District of the Cumbria region of northwestern England in 1974, began to take writing…
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Author treats death and grief with realism
Some will understand more fully than others. On a Wednesday you arrive home to find the one you love collapsed…
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Something satisfying in a good mystery
Jack Reacher is back. In Past Tense (Delacorte Press, 2018, 382 pages), Lee Child, author of 21 novels about Jack…
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Apollo missions were propelled by a bold vision
July 20, 1969. This summer marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin…
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The art of writing can certainly be learned
“What we have here is failure to communicate.” So says The Captain, the warden of a prison, in the movie…
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A quick run through some fine books
Spring-cleaning. Those two words conjure up images of washing windows, storing away the winter clothes, and carting off odds-and-ends to…
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A book for those who love books
Yes! Yes! YES! YES! Lest you think I am wallowing in some bed of literoticism or celebrating Molly Bloom from…
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Jennie Churchill was anything but a prude
Mrs. Patrick Campbell, famed Victorian actress, was renowned for her sharp wit. On hearing about a sexual relationship between two…
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Reading aloud is good medicine for all
Here are two books about books, one aimed at amusement, the other at instruction. Or so they were written and…
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Yiddish noir novel hits the mark
So, how many Yiddish authors do you know? If you’re like me your answer would be none. That is until…
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A worthwhile book on raising children
Much is made these days of “snowflakes,” slang for some of our young people. One online source defines snowflakes as…
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Falling in love with a writer
Valentine’s Day is almost here, and I have fallen in love. Again. Three years ago, Nina George entranced me with…
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A poet offers thoughts on life and death
When someone dies, we look for words to assuage our grief and the grief of others. We deliver eulogies, we…
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When the fault lies in ourselves
I used to teach seminars in composition, history, literature, and Latin to homeschool students. One day a bright young man…
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A master in our midst
Michael Revere grew up here in these mountains. He went to college at the University of North Carolina at Chapel…
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Graham Greene, redemption, and us
Let’s start the new year with some old books. We begin with two suppositions. First, you are a good person…
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The unbelievable kindness of Mr. Rogers
My online dictionary defines hagiography as “the writing of the lives of the saints, adulatory writing about another person, or…
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Making a small dent in the book pile
So many books, so little time. Many booklovers may have uttered that old saw with a sigh, but in my…
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Playing with a net: ‘Formal Salutations’
When I was teaching homeschool students in AP Literature, I would on occasion ask them to write a sonnet. The…
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What a woman! Why I love Camille Paglia
Fierce. Honest. Libertarian. Those are just three of the reasons why author and professor Camille Paglia has fascinated me for…
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A fine novel about a fascinating literary era
The writers who lived and practiced their art between the two world wars of the twentieth century continue to exert…
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You can’t make this stuff up
One of my favorite and most often used aphorisms in this lifetime has been “you can’t make this stuff up.”…
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Cookbooks make nice holiday gifts
So there I was on a Wednesday afternoon in October in one of my favorite spots in town: the public…
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Book explores Trump’s election victory
Want to know why Donald Trump won the 2016 election in one of the most stunning upsets in American history?…
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Halloween suggestions for the young and old
In 2015, online blogger Amanda Russo posted a humorous piece “Why Halloween Is Actually A Pretty Weird Holiday.” As Russo…
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A book for those who wonder what ails them
Time to move away from novels and histories, and look inside some general gift books. First up is How Psychology…
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Book examines change in rural Appalachia
In the last 75 years, the landscape and the culture of the Appalachian South have undergone enormous change. Take the…
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A start on that ever-growing pile of books
So many books, so little time. Many booklovers may have uttered that old saw with a sigh, but in my…
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A slow, beautiful tale told through letters
English farmwife and mother Tina Hopgood writes to Professor P.V. Glob. The professor had long ago dedicated his book, The…
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Tyler delivers another delightful novel
Years ago, my wife and I belonged to a Waynesville book club in which a couple would act as host…
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God’s broadcasting station — the great outdoors
When I taught homeschool seminars in Latin, history, and literature in Asheville, I would wait for a cold spell in…
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Events for readers and writers
Salvation sought through moonshine Terry Roberts will present his new novel The Holy Ghost and Speakeasy and Revival at 3…
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Older books are still worth a read
Two days ago, I finished reading Jon Hassler’s Rookery Blues (Ballantine Books, 1995, 485 pages). Hassler focuses his novel on…
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Joy’s third novel rooted firmly in Jackson County
In that moment, he knew that he was standing in the midst of something that would never be forgotten, something that…
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Hiaasen’s graduation book misses the mark
About 15 years ago, I was listening to a female critic discussing the seasons’ upcoming movies. When the moderator mentioned…
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An endearing coming of age teaching story
When we are in school, we consider ourselves fortunate when we find ourselves in the company of inspiring teachers. We…
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A new writer with an old heart
In a prologue that will make you cry — bringing hackles of guilt to your eyes — Tommy Orange has…
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History of American furniture a fascinating story
Oscar P. Fitzgerald’s American Furniture: 1650 to the Present (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018, 621 pages) is a door-stopper book, a…
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Grab some books and keep the kids reading
Most of us, of whatever age, by a simple act of memory and willpower can revisit distant summers in our…
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Choose your summer reading carefully
The last 10 days have brought some broad swatches of time for reading. Two novels have traveled from the library,…
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A visit to the library and some amazing finds
On my last visit to the public library, I picked up Kathryn Sermak’s Miss D & Me: Life With The…
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Frazier’s latest novel is a marvelous read
... never acknowledging that the general culture is often stupid or evil and would vote out God in favor of…
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Book examines ‘meanness’ in Christianity
The author of this book is a speech language psychologist and university educator. Now in his sixties, Billy has extensive experience…
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Characters and music star in The Music Shop
Can there be a sadder sight than a man in his sixties sitting in a garden with tears dribbling down…
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Judging a book by its cover
In Appalachia and the foothills and into the surrounding lands, we find log cabins — southern and rustic — constructed…
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Sense of time and place resonates throughout this novel
Sometimes a writer so imaginatively recreates a place and a people that the book becomes a time machine, sweeping us…
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