In writing about child hunger in “Demon Copperhead,” Kingsolver triggers memories where I saw it as a pre-teen.
Monthly Archives: May 2023
Behold, He Lightens the Dark Clouds
In Donne’s “Ascension,” Jesus transforms from strong ram to mild lamb to guide the poet to God.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Ascension", "Sonnet 14", "Corona", Holy Spirit, John Donne Comments closed
Baldwin, Cop Sadism, and MAGA
In “If Beale Street Could Talk,” Baldwin captures cop sadism of the sort we also seen in Trump supporters.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Donald Trump, Fascism, If Beale Street Could Talk, James Baldwin, MAGA, racism, sadism Comments closed
How Proust Saved a Prisoner’s Soul
In an intense search for meaning, prisoner Daniel Genis finally found it in Proust.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "To Alithea from Prison", Epictetus, Ice Age, In Search of Lost Time, Jean Paul Sartre, Marcel Proust, Margaret Drabble, meaning of life, No Exit, reading in prison, Richard Lovelace, Stoicism Comments closed
Selling Dead Souls in an American Prison
While lit mostly helped Daniel Genis handle a 10-year prison term, novels by Gogol and Thomas Mann got him into special trouble.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Daniel Genis, Dead Souls, Doctor Faustus, Nikolai Gogol, prison reading, soul selling, Thomas Mann Comments closed
Reading in Solitary Confinement
Reporting on reading in prison, Genis reports that lit helped him cope with solitary confinement but didn’t always help him understand his fellow inmates.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Daniel Genis, prison life, reading in prison, solitary confinement Comments closed
Frustrated Longing in Queen Charlotte
In Netflix’s “Queen Charlotte,” two widows form an unlikely friendship. Both would benefit from Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s poetry.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Epistle from Mrs. Yonge to Her Hustand", Exiled Grown Old in Poverty and Pain", female desires, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Queen Charlotte, widowhood Comments closed
T.S. Eliot’s Cats and Jesus’s Sheep
In a sermon about Jesus as shepherd knowing each of our names, Scott Lee cites a T.S. Eliot cat poem.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Naming of Cats", "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats", Jesus as shepherd, names and naming, Scott Lee, T.S. Eliot Comments closed
The Perfect Sonnet for Mother’s Day
Note: If you wish to receive, via e-mail, (1) my weekly newsletter or (2) daily copies of these posts, notify me at [email protected] and indicate which you would like. I promise not to share your e-mail address with anyone. To unsubscribe, send me a follow-up email. Friday With Mother’s Day coming up Sunday, here’s one of the […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Sonnets Are Full of Love", Christina Rossetti, Mother's Day, Mothers Comments closed
