About stories of all kinds
170 years ago today, 16 October 1854, Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin. He became a popular playwright during his life, also writing many short stories, some poetry, and perhaps most famously today, the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. “Let us go to the theatre to-night,” said Lord Henry. “There is sure to be… Continue reading “a rather nice excuse”
Poe has quickly become one of my favourite authors (if not the favourite judging by how often I reference him or his writings) and as such must have an extra special dedicated post for once rather than simply popping up throughout everything else I write like a macabre jack-in-the-box.
I'm not by any means a morning person, but I can sympathize with Richard Hannay here, the narrator of this Buchan tale: if you must ruin part of the day with unpleasantness, why not morning which is already a grim prospect to face anyway? Certainly, I've always thought I'm much more motivated and awake to… Continue reading “anyhow depressed and only half-awake”
There's nothing like reading to disabuse one of the notion that they are unique, alone in the universe, an anomaly unto themselves. Yet, at times, in the insulation of our own consciousness, we are inclined to imagine ourselves the sole inhabitants of the universe. In a way, we are the only inhabitor of our own… Continue reading “set down in some old book”
I don't think there is anyone quite like H.G. Wells, who can so convincingly write about fantastical impossibilities in a manner that is not only credulous but also firmly rooted in a comprehensive grasp of known science, society, and human nature. Maybe Jules Verne comes close but seems at times out of touch with human… Continue reading Strange and Hideous Dreams: The War of the Worlds Review
It's Aldous Huxley's 130th birthday today. He was born July 26, 1894 in England and became a respected writer and philosopher, nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature multiple times throughout his life. Huxley's writing has insight into human nature and its social dynamics and development, from the famous Brave New World to his seemingly… Continue reading “to say what one thinks”
Northanger Abbey (completed 1803, published 1817) by Jane Austen I've read Northanger Abbey at least four times, if not more. I recently re-read it with my book club after we finished The Mysteries of Udolpho, which is heavily referenced in Northanger Abbey. It only gets better on re-read, I find. Due in no small part… Continue reading Two Towers, Pt. 2: Northanger Abbey
Fictitiously Yours 