On a winter solstice in 19th century Oxfordshire, a half-drowned man staggers into a rural pub carrying the body of a young girl. But is the the girl On a winter solstice in 19th century Oxfordshire, a half-drowned man staggers into a rural pub carrying the body of a young girl. But is the the girl dead, and which lost girl is she?
What an utterly beautiful, thoughtful book - about family and loss and finding a place and, most of all, about story. Intricate and magical, with some of the best characterisation I've ever read....more
Actually came up on my podcast feed, on the Memory Palace, read by Nate DiMeo.
I'd meant to post about it anyway as the best comment on the White HouseActually came up on my podcast feed, on the Memory Palace, read by Nate DiMeo.
I'd meant to post about it anyway as the best comment on the White House superspreader event was made by blogger and podcaster Driftglass on the Professional Left podcast:
"The Masque of the Red Death just gets funnier EVERY SINGLE TIME! (with thanks to Beetlejuice)"...more
I have read A Christmas Carol, though many years ago, and my memories of it are those of the various films - the Alastair Sim version being the pinnacI have read A Christmas Carol, though many years ago, and my memories of it are those of the various films - the Alastair Sim version being the pinnacle, with the Muppets a distant but creditable second place (for those of my American friends who consider the George C. Scott version the best, as much as I adore the actor himself, I am afraid you are simply wrong).
My lady took me as a surprise to see a local AmDram performance the other day, updated to the modern age and relocated to our city of Sheffield - Scrooge and Marley were a payday loan company, Tiny Tim was replaced by Tarik, a Syrian orphan fostered by the Cratchitt's and in imminent danger of deportation, sprinkled with references to the political situation both local and global.
And, for all the varied level of acting expertise and other glorious faults of an amateur production, it was superb. If anything, this emphasised the brilliance, that the story - as potentially heavy and syrupy as a Victorian pudding - is so profound and human and relevant and, appallingly, probably always will be, but with the hope of change if only we can see that our actions have consequences beyond ourselves.
I am profoundly atheistic but am far from ashamed at the lump in my throat every time I hear "Merry Christmas everybody and god bless us, every one!"...more
A quick, fun read by Lovegrove, largely catching the tone and mood of the original Conan Doyle stories - and bringing a slightly more speculative fictA quick, fun read by Lovegrove, largely catching the tone and mood of the original Conan Doyle stories - and bringing a slightly more speculative fiction element sometimes found in ACDs non-Holmes stories, which just brushes the edge of steampunk. Oddly, one failing of the tone is that I found it difficult to differentiate between the voices of Holmes and Watson. Perhaps Lovegrove couldn't hep thinking of them as a single entity.
There are a number of these latter-day Holmes adventures, and i own several of them by both Lovegrove and George Mann (an author deeply conversant with steampunk and Victoriana), and am looking forward to reading more....more
I am a big fan of Oscar Wilde, but I confess that The Canterville Ghost is my least favourite of his works. I still enjoy it but find that it has dat I am a big fan of Oscar Wilde, but I confess that The Canterville Ghost is my least favourite of his works. I still enjoy it but find that it has dated more than his plays and poetry, possibly precisely because it is prose. While I know that it is - as most of Wilde’s work - a satire, I still find it suffers from the rather heavy handed sentimentality that marks so much Victorian fiction. While this is also apparent in some of Wilde’s fairy tales, it seems to fit somewhat less comfortably in the real world setting (albeit a real world that contains a ghost), and this somewhat blunts the wit and satire, for my taste at any rate....more
