Love it or hate it, The Great Gatsby is considered by many, including yours truly, to be the greatest novel of all time. As widely misunderstood and panned as it is praised, both the novel and its author owe its fame to a couple of World Wars--even though, interestingly, neither directly touched the conflicts that … Continue reading The Green Light on the Battlefields of France
literature
Father Christmas and The Goblins
In December 1920, an innocent three year-old named John asked his father about a person he'd heard rumors about for the past few weeks. Who was this Father Christmas fellow? Where did he come from? Where did he live? Simple, ordinary questions from a curious child, not unlike queries pressed upon parents all over the … Continue reading Father Christmas and The Goblins
Yo-Ho-Ho and an ‘X’ Marks the Spot
On November 14, 1883, pirates were born. Well, pirates as we know them. After months of serialization in the children's magazine Young Folks, Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island" was published as a novel on this day by Cassel & Co publishers. The swash-buckling tale of Jim Hawkins and Long John Silver was massively popular and … Continue reading Yo-Ho-Ho and an ‘X’ Marks the Spot
A Celebratory Piece of Turkish Delight
In 1939, as Hitler began his swift march across Europe, three children made a journey of their own, arriving at the doorstep of the Kilns in Risinghurst, just outside of Oxford, where C.S. Lewis was a professor of English Literature. Although only forty, his request to re-enter military service was denied and the armed force's … Continue reading A Celebratory Piece of Turkish Delight
Authors Are People, Too
If you've ever walked the halls of Hogwarts with Harry, floated down the Mississippi River with Huck, or braved the stares of Puritan America with Hester--all without leaving the comfort of your house--then you understand the sheer magic of books. What you might not understand, however, is the amount of blood, sweat, and tears that … Continue reading Authors Are People, Too
Call Me George
The Essex was a lucky ship, or so the old-timers used to say. Although old and small, her previous whaling voyages had been disproportionately successful (and--more importantly--profitable), especially the last one, in which George Pollard Jr. and Owen Chase had done so well, they had earned their promotions to captain and first mate, respectively. So … Continue reading Call Me George
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