This review contains spoilers. The premise of R.F. Kuang’s sixth novel, “Katabasis,” sounds like a BookTok dream: a dark academia enemies-to-lovers fantasy that’s part Dante’s “Inferno” and part campus satire. The novel follows two alternative universe-Cambridge Ph.D. students, Alice and Peter, who must put aside their academic rivalry and journey through Hell to rescue their...| The Daily Northwestern
I aimed to read women in translation this summer (August is earmarked as #WITMonth), and I did read quite a few. I’m happy I got to meet so many new-to-me authors, and revisit a couple of fav…| Entering the Enchanted Castle
Rainer Maria Rilke’s "Letters to a Young Painter" explores how art, cats and the paradox of possession illuminate the creative life.| The Culturium
The 20th-century Greek-Alexandrian poet wrote of a faded grandeur that stood for all humanity.| New Statesman
This is the final post in a three-part series on the mortal human body in two classic works of literature: Homer’s Iliad and Dostoyevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov. Though the topic may seem morbid, …| joshuamcnall.com
In this essay, Eileen Watts draws parallels between Daniel Deronda and the book of Exodus The post Daniel Deronda: George Eliot’s Book of Exodus appeared first on The Lehrhaus.| The Lehrhaus
21.6 – 20.6 thousand years ago Glacial periods within the present Ice Age start gradually and end rapidly. The last glacial period began around 90 thousand years ago, and reached its peak, the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), around 20 thousand years ago. During the LGM most of Northern Europe and northern North America were under […]| Logarithmic History
looking or feeling ill or nauseated—1843, in a letter by Charles Dickens—when applied to a person, the plural noun ‘gills’ designates the flesh under the jaws and ears; also the cheeks| word histories
For members of the Brazilian Academy of Prison Letters, the case is about free speech: “After all, a prison sentence doesn’t strip the person from other fundamental rights.”| Global Voices
“The Austen biography space is fairly saturated and covered. But there’s still a lot more we can learn by seeing her in context: that is, by seeing Austen in relation to her society, her family, her friends.”| Public Books
Listen to The Literary Life: On today’s episode of The Literary Life Podcast, Angelina and Thomas are joined by Atlee Northmore to discuss film adaptations of Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence. After sharing their commonplace quotes, Atlee begins outlining the history of screen adaptations of Edith Wharton’s novels, some of which were made during her own lifetime. Angelina and Thomas talk about their high standards for movie adaptations of books and how Scorsese’s film surpassed th...| The Literary Life
This week on The Literary Life Podcast we wrap up the book discussion portion of our series on Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence. Today, Angelina and Thomas begin with chapter 22, going through the significant scenes all the way to the end of the book. They talk about the ways in which this book is an elegy, as well as the continued glimpses of “the family” as the main character. They also discuss the ways in which May shows herself to be more cunning that she pretends in contrast to...| The Literary Life
Sport, both as a cultural phenomenon and as a symbolic field, has played an important but relatively little-studied role in Polish literature and culture. This special issue will explore how sport has been represented, narrated, and interpreted in Polish literary and cultural texts across different historical periods. We are particularly interested in critical approaches that consider sport not only as a subject but also as a cultural phenomenon characterized by national identity, ideology, m...| idrottsforum.org
The Kent landscape that inspired Stig of the Dump connects a beloved children’s book to eerie local legends of time-slips and ghostly figures, writes NEIL NIXON| Spooky Kent
Dacre Stoker went from unaware descendant to devoted guardian of Bram Stoker’s legacy. He tells DAVID SAUNDERSON about uncovering his past and keeping Dracula’s story alive| Spooky Isles
Thomas Parnell's A Night-Piece on Death reveals how death, decay, and nature merge in the eerie roots of Gothic poetry, writes WILLIAM BOVE| Spooky Isles
By Douglas J. Weatherford Although having penned only three books of fiction, Juan Rulfo (Mexico, 1917-1986) is one of his nation’s most read authors, at home and abroad. Indeed, two... READ MORE The post An Exploration of Mexican Writer Juan Rulfo through Literature, Photography, Film, and Music appeared first on University of Texas Press.| University of Texas Press
Writing poems is a great warm-up exercise for writing.| Tim Covell
a bad-tempered, sullen person—UK, 1981—here, the noun ‘drawers’ means ‘underpants’| word histories
Last week I spent most of the week on a literature course (part of the North West Region U3A’s summer school) at Manchester Metropolitan Museum in Manchester. The title of the course, which was led by the wonderful Meg Shaw,… Continue reading →| Jenny Connected
Typically do civilizations which traded with each other have written records of each other? I am wondering if the language, people, rise and fall of society in Indus Valley Civilization is accounted in other civilizations lending to the credence of Aryan invasion theory of Dravidians. Why is it difficult to prove or disprove the hypothesis? General answer and Aryan invasion theory as example. Writing began in 3500 BC before the final of Indus Valley Civilization and trade should be existing i...| Recent Questions - History Stack Exchange
Shortly after the release of her second novel, "Little Pink Book," the author joined Alexi Alario of Nymphet Alumni to discuss the book's wide-ranging inspirations over bubble tea. The post Olivia Kan-Sperling on Alt-Lit, E-Girls, and the Joys of Cultural Appropriation appeared first on Interview Magazine.| Interview Magazine
"Dorothy L. Sayers was the premiere female Christian intellectual of twentieth-century Britain, whose foremost accomplishments include being a pioneering detective novelist and religious dramatist, a daring translator of Dante, and a trenchant social critic who advanced a sacramental notion of work against technocratic utilitarianism."| The Russell Kirk Center
"With this kind of project, the challenge for the author is to craft a thesis that justifies the collection of essays and brings unity to the collection. Wood has done so as well as anyone might. The thesis of the book makes a statement about the Christian church in America."| The Russell Kirk Center
a collection of words posted here and there| The Polar Bl@st
Contra the modernist aesthetes, he believed in “the interdependence of knowledge and virtue.”| Modern Age
The key to the mystery of Bernard Lonergan’s appeal may be that he has helped so many move toward a greater understanding of themselves, the universe and God. The post Bernard Lonergan: The (second) English-speaking Doctor of the Church? appeared first on America Magazine.| America Magazine
The beloved Delacorte Theatre in Central Park has reopened as a sleeker, more comfy, more accessible version of itself. You could apply each of those adjectives to the show onstage as well. The post ‘Twelfth Night’ in Central Park is Shakespeare as we like it appeared first on America Magazine.| America Magazine
In 'Hindu and Catholic, Priest and Scholar,' the Rev. Francis X. Clooney tells the story of his lifelong engagement in dialogue with the Hindu tradition—as a Jesuit priest. The post Review: A bridge between Christian and Hindu mysticism appeared first on America Magazine.| America Magazine
Every age has its distractions, and its temptations for a shortcut. But if we are to understand ourselves and our predicament, we have the same resources our predecessors had. We have books to read. We will grow or shrink as human beings according to our willingness to read them.| Public Discourse
V.S. Naipaul’s The Enigma of Arrival is a novel for all seasons. It’s a book about seeing and the failure to see; about the difference between wanting to be a writer and truly becoming one; about understanding one’s place in the world and also understanding what that means in a world defined by constant change, governed by loss, entropy, and the inexorable wingbeat of time. It anticipates and yet far surpasses the contemporary vogue for so-called “autofiction” — or just writing wh...| UnHerd
A poignant autobiographical short story by one of India’s finest writers.| India’s National Fortnightly Magazine
said of a great number of persons or things, especially when pressed against one another—UK, 1776—refers to herrings in a barrel| word histories
But I don’t say that, instead I will say that I’m going to build a Tiny House, and ditch the double-wide. That way they will be awed instead by my quirky ingenuousness, and believe I want to live here. Not that I have to because I am broken, by promises and their men, profound overwhelming sadness and disappointment, and the relentless strivings of city life. Besides, I own this un-sellable land. I have nowhere else to belong. It’s hard barren dirt is in my blood. The full Main Street M...| Memoir Magazine
Memoir is about absence, emptiness; it’s about crossing divides–of time, space, language, and that ultimate divide between the living and the dead. It’s standing at the edge of the void, your body in the grip of a vertiginous urge. Memoir is about finding your bearings so that you can walk with one foot in the present and the other in the past. There, you have become the stateless citizen of multiple countries; you hold a passport for time travel. The full Sourdough, Ancestors, and Othe...| Memoir Magazine
And then there were days when the ditch was full but no one to play with. My cousins weren’t around, and my brother didn’t want anything to do with me, so I put on my swim trunks or cut-offs or whatever lingered clean in my dresser drawer and what I had deemed worthy of ditch... The full Ditch Days by Kase Johnstun can be found at Memoir Magazine.| Memoir Magazine
Finally, Saunders reminds us that everything he has written is "according to George" and that we should have confidence in our own opinions| The Australian Legend
I was a palm-wine drinkard since I was a boy of ten years of age. I had no other work more than to drink palm-wine in my life| The Australian Legend
Ahead of the release of Grand Rapids, which takes on sexual awakenings in Michigan suburbia, the author dishes on growing up, doing too much, and straight women complaining. The post Author Natasha Stagg on Why the Way We Talk About Men Today Isn’t Doing Straight Women Any Favors appeared first on Cultured Mag.| Cultured Mag
They're discussing life on set, at Burning Man, in the restaurant industry, and more in these must-read catch-ups.| Cultured Mag
An interview with Togolese author Sami Tchak, exploring how he defines and shapes his francophone writing in the context of the growing visibility of francophone African literatures.| Global Voices
Zurab Karumidze’s postmodern novel turns Tbilisi into a stage where artists, revolutionaries, and mystics collide.| OC Media
It is an intimate art, the translation business. But it is the art of creatures like we humans, who live always on the border of matter and spirit, trying to marry together the infinite and the finite, the spiritual and the earthly, the eternal and the temporal. On January 11, 1940, the Italian writer and [...]| The Imaginative Conservative
When it comes to considering America’s greatest writers, it would be foolish to ignore Willa Cather as a contender. Indeed, it is quite possible that her 1925 novel, Death Comes for the Archbishop is the great American novel, rivaling anything that came before or since. Yet, Cather was consistent. While not at the level of Death Comes, her 1913 O Pioneers and [...]| The Imaginative Conservative
In Evangeline's quest of the Bride for the Bridegroom, of the lover for her true beloved, we are reminded of the soul’s quest for Christ, who is the Bridegroom of all bridegrooms. The figure of Evangeline Bellefontaine is as elusive as the figure of Gabriel Lajeunesse, the man to whom she was betrothed and whom [...]| The Imaginative Conservative
a container used to store for posterity a selection of objects thought to be representative of a particular moment in time—USA, 1938—coined to specifically designate the container built by the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company for the 1939 New York World’s Fair| word histories
1901—a look inviting sexual interest—hence, the adjective ‘bedroom-eyed’ (1925), which means: giving a look inviting sexual interest| word histories
(intransitive): to spend the summer—UK, 1797, in the following title: The Sea Side, a Poem, in a Series of familiar Epistles, from Mr. Simkin Slenderwit, summerising at Ramsgate, to his dear Mother…| word histories
Summer can be a time to reset, giving ourselves pause before life picks up pace again in the later months…| The Reader
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘The Land Ironclads’ is one of the most prophetic short stories by H. G. Wells (1866-1946), a writer who made more than his fair share of accurate prophecies. First published in the Strand magazine in December 1903, the story anticipated the invention of the tank in modern warfare some ... Read more| Interesting Literature
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) Fancy a very short story about voyeurism, exhibitionism, and titillation? Raymond Carver’s story ‘The Idea’ has all three, and in his trademark minimalist style and utilising first-person narration, he presents us with a short tale told by a suburban housewife who takes an unhealthy interest in her neighbours’ nighttime ... Read more| Interesting Literature
"By reading these artistic, creative works of literature, the ways they tell stories, the ways they show humanity and inhumanity, the ways they show hu ...| antidotezine.com
*** Poet Sue Hubbard is probably best known for her sublime art installation/poem ‘Eurydice’ which stretches the length of the tunnel from Waterloo Station to Waterloo Bridge – or used to I have not been there for a while – has produced this lovely novel of loneliness, loss and redemption all set within the sound […]| Volatile Rune
A literary reflection by Rachel Bomberger on John Milton's Paradise Lost. This is one installment of a monthly series providing reflections on works of literature from a Lutheran perspective. Of Man’s First Disobedience, and the Fruit / Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal taste / Brought Death into the World, and all our woe, / With loss of Eden, till one greater Man / Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat, / Sing Heav’nly Muse, … … What in me is dark / Illumine, what is low rai...| The Lutheran Witness
Kirti Verma explores the critical connections between literature, mental health, and the emergence of medical humanities in India through the work of writer, translator, poet, and editor Jerry Pinto.| the polyphony
We Computers: A Ghazal Novel is a multilayered exploration of poetry, authorship, and digital intelligence. The book follows French poet and psychologist Jon-Perse who, inspired by what his translation partner... READ MORE The post We Computers: A Conversation with Hamid Ismailov and Shelley Fairweather-Vega appeared first on Yale University Press.| Yale University Press
Martin Mittelmeier— 100 years ago, Theodor Adorno and Siegfried Kracauer began their journey to Naples, where they met Walter Benjamin and Alfred Sohn-Rethel. This meeting transformed their way of thinking... READ MORE The post The 100th Anniversary of Critical Theory in Naples appeared first on Yale University Press.| Yale University Press
Catherine Lacey is a writer of extraordinary gifts, with hard-earned adult wisdom and the kind of effortless sentence-to-sentence felicity that makes any writer reading her strongly consider pursuing alternate careers.| Compact
ContentsThe Regulatory Standards Bill: Neoliberal Shackles Disguised as “Good Law” Rebuke and Resistance: Te Pāti Māori’s Protest, Abstentionism, and the Path to Indigenous Sovereignty Pay Equity Protest Greenwashed Capitalism: The Limits of the Green Party’s 2025 Budget Available from: https://awsm4u.noblogs.org/post/2025/06/01/july-2025-issue-of-solidarity-newsletter-of-aotearoa-workers-solidarity-movement/| The Polar Bl@st
The right kind of literature has the power to make the immediate visible to us once again.| Front Porch Republic
Our perceptual relationship with the world works because we trust prior stories. We could not fully perceive a tree if we did not know (because others have told us) that it is the product of a long growth process and that it does not grow overnight. This certainty is part of our “understanding” that a… Continue reading Our perceptual relationship with the world works because we trust prior stories | Umberto Eco→| Biblioklept
AI. That pair of letters, when I first encountered it, was a Bronze Age city. It was, according to the Book of Joshua, a stronghold of the Canaanites, the Semitic-speaking population of Palestine before the invasion from across the Jordan by their cousins the Hebrews. The name, ha-`ay, “the heap of ruins,” must have been … Continue reading "AI" The post AI appeared first on Universal Workshop.| Universal Workshop
Set near the source of the Amazon River in the Peruvian Andes, Matthiessen’s novel begins in the last outpost of civilization, a ramshackle mission town. Here, the missionaries Leslie and Andy Hube…| Literary Theory and Criticism
What can time travel stories teach us about ourselves, the world, and our relationship to God?| Public Orthodoxy
As the season is now in full swing, we are celebrating summer days and sunshine in July’s Monthly Stories and Poems pack.… The post July’s Stories & Poems appeared first on The Reader.| The Reader
Let's talk people power, housing crisis, literature and humanities in four nation-building sessions.| ESTHER ANATOLITIS
For anyone interested in the sacred dimension of reading, I’ve created a week of free online meetings to introduce a contemplative way of engaging with texts–not necessarily “religious” in the conventional sense. I’m very excited to share this practice with you all, as it’s been transformative in my own life. Each meeting will be independent, … Continue reading A week of sacred reading starts tomorrow| Entering the Enchanted Castle
The African American poet’s life of exclusion and hope resonates with Dalit literature and activism in 21st-century India.| Reviews of latest books and articles on authors | Frontline
There is an urgent need for new, more affirmative ways to participate in culture, especially against the ongoing systematic whiteness of publishing and the exclusivity of elite institutions. The post Our Golden Age of Reading (Online) appeared first on Public Books.| Public Books
“When people write about the working-class world, which they rarely do, it is most often because they have left it behind,” admits Didier Eribon, in his 2009 French memoir of class transition, Returning to Reims. “They thereby contribute to perpetuating the social illegitimacy of the people they are speaking of in the very moment of speaking about them.” But he can only acknowledge this problem... The post “I Will Write to Avenge My Race”: Baglin, Louis, and Ernaux on Class Transi...| Public Books
J. K. Rowling tells the truth in her fiction. Her twitter feed is another matter. Perhaps the limitations of the genre don’t allow her to communicate the nuance, sensitivity, and charity that characterize her fiction. Whatever the case, there’s a chasm between what she writes in her novels and what she tweets. In her fiction, … Continue reading "J. K. Rowling Tells the Truth . . . In Her Fiction"| For His Renown
The title of this post says what you need to know about this play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, bearing the ascription, “based on an original new story by J. K. Rowling, John Tiffany, and Jack Thorne; a new play by Jack Thorne.” Here are my complaints, as they come to me: The characters are … Continue reading "It’s Not a J. K. Rowling Novel"| For His Renown
This graphic novel depicts the story of the 1891 Coal Creek War—one of the most significant yet overlooked labor and abolitionist uprisings in US History.| Scalawag
As soon as the owner of an old wardrobe/television/bicycle pushes it off the ramp, as soon as it’s “in there,” as they say at the Berlin Sanitation Department’s waste disposal sites, it no longer belongs to him; instead, it becomes the property of the department. The post Permanent Impermanence appeared first on The Point Magazine.| The Point Magazine
I’m still breathing, I’ll tell her, and so are those around me.| The Point Magazine
While many radical bookshops across the UK fold under the increasing costs of running a small business, Housmans in Peace House has remained a community pillar for readers and activists alike. The post Prose and pacifism: Cally Road’s radical booksellers appeared first on Artefact.| Artefact
The best-selling true crime author discusses her latest book and how murder can reveal the lives of ordinary people and expose the underlying attitudes of wider society. The post Kate Summerscale: True crime as social commentary appeared first on Artefact.| Artefact
The post-Independence Hindi writer’s work is about all the spaces and people India chose to ignore after 1947.| Reviews of latest books and articles on authors | Frontline
| Reviews of latest books and articles on authors | Frontline
In Heart Lamp, the everyday brutalities of patriarchy unfold quietly—through unpaid care, stolen choices, and a refusal to give in.| Reviews of latest books and articles on authors | Frontline
Who is John Galt? This question opens Ayn Rand’s acclaimed novel Atlas Shrugged. At first just a joke, this query begins a serious investigation on the part of protagonist Dagny Taggart to discover the identity of this man. She discovers... Read More ›| Literary Theory and Criticism
In World of Light, a 1979 documentary featuring May Sarton, the author frankly discusses many pressing concerns: attitudes toward the aged in the United States, being true to oneself, writing as self-realization, passionate relationships between women (sexual or otherwise), and... Read More ›| Literary Theory and Criticism
As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner’s fifth novel, is the third set in his fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, and the first that identifies Yoknapatawpha County by name. The novel was written immediately after—although published before—Sanctuary, the sensational “potboiler” Faulkner had... Read More ›| Literary Theory and Criticism
Arrowsmith was one of five major novels that Sinclair Lewis wrote in the 1920s and the one for which he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. It was turned into a popular movie in 1931 starring Ronald Co…| Literary Theory and Criticism
“Australia is not a melting pot, more a coleslaw.”| The Australian Legend
A short selection of critical works that will make you a better writer.| De minimis non curat Lex
I love when I stumble across poems that appear explicitly in conversation with one another. One such pairing is Rainer Maria Rilke's "Archaic Torso of Apollo" and James Wright's "Lying in a Hammock at William Duffy's Farm in Pine Island, Minnesota." Since I haven't sought permission to reprint the poems, I'll only link to them here.| De minimis non curat Lex
There's still time to take one of these must-reads to the beach.| Cultured Mag
Inside: Thinking of ditching book reports in junior high? Hold that thought! Book reports teach vital skills to teens. Learn how to quickly organize and effectively create comprehensive book reports by using my free book report template, a sample of my comprehensive The Ultimate Book Report Master Guide. In elementary... The post How to Excel at Junior High Book Reports: Free Book Report Template Inside! appeared first on Monkey and Mom.| Monkey and Mom
From the very first moment I opened our BookShark curriculum box over a year ago, I had a strong feeling that this was a homeschooling gem we’d treasure for years to come. And I wasn’t wrong. Because, honestly, what’s not to love about it? If you love reading, you’ll love... The post Why We Chose BookShark Curriculum Level G for 7th Grade History and Language Arts | Review appeared first on Monkey and Mom.| Monkey and Mom
A real struggle over the years for us has been to find an all-in-one language arts curriculum that fits all the checklists: concise, easy to implement, affordable, and based on classical books. While there is no such thing as a perfect curriculum, Learning Language Arts Through Literature from Common Sense... The post The Tan Book Review | Learning Language Arts Through Literature {6th grade} appeared first on Monkey and Mom.| Monkey and Mom
We're celebrating Pride Month with some of our favourite cultural picks focusing on LGBTQ+ culture The post Our Pride Picks appeared first on The Culture Sift.| The Culture Sift
How is our cultural desire for nothingness reflected within the growing depiction of women's mental health issues in literature? The post Woman Seeks Oblivion: ‘Nothingness’ in Contemporary Fiction appeared first on The Culture Sift.| The Culture Sift
Emma Cummings, co-founder of Arise Home Education and Maths and English Literature tutor, was so dissatisfied with the options for ... Read more The post High School English iGCSE in Christian Home Education appeared first on Arise Home Education.| Arise Home Education
As home education in the UK and Europe continues to grow and diversify, now is an exciting time to embark ... Read more The post Home Ed Courses for Ages 13-17 appeared first on Arise Home Education.| Arise Home Education
What is the typical course of study for the early secondary years? [Ages 11-13] A typical course of study can ... Read more The post Home Ed Courses for Ages 11-13 appeared first on Arise Home Education.| Arise Home Education
COVER ART BY ERNEST WILLIAMSON III FICTION TEN MILES OF A RIVER BY THOMAS MIXON HAVE YOU SEEN ME? BY FRANCES ORROK DEADBOLT BY ROSS FEELER LUCKY ENOUGH BY LESLIE PIETRZYK NONFI…| Pithead Chapel
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘The Plattner Story’ is a short story by H. G. Wells (1866-1946), whom Brian Aldiss dubbed ‘the Shakespeare of science fiction’. This story demonstrates why. Originally published in the New Review in 1896, the story concerns a schoolteacher who accidentally projects himself into another world. The plot of ‘The ... Read more| Interesting Literature
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘Crossover’ is a 1971 short story by Octavia Butler (1947-2006), first published in the anthology Clarion before being included in Butler’s short-story collection Bloodchild and Other Stories. This very short story explores a number of themes including poverty, hopelessness, addiction, and the blurred line between reality and illusion, as ... Read more| Interesting Literature
A question often posed by non-Tajik readers and scholars is: Why read Bahmanyar? Some may even ask, who is Bahmanyar? Bahmanyar, a prominent Tajik writer, achieved significant recognition from the early 1980s to the late 2000s, marking the peak of his literary career. During the period of perestroika through the early 2000s, Bahmanyar’s name was […]| Zamaneh Media
