Time, like money, is something we can spend, borrow, steal, donate, and share. Diaries and memoirs are one way for writers to share a bit of their time with us. Margaret Sartor’s Miss American Pie A Diary of Love, Secrets, and Growing Up in the 1970s can be read on a couple of levels. It... Continue Reading →
The Lust for Tragic Spectacle
Sylvia Plath's "Aftermath" and the Tragedy Lookie-Loos I am a avid reader of poetry but April, National Poetry Month, is a time for a closer look and a bit of introspection when it comes to my shelf of poetry books. I pulled Sylvia Plath's The Colossus and Other Poems the other day and thumbed through... Continue Reading →
Koba the Dread
The Pinnacle of Unpersoning In a time of unpersoning and a culture of cancelation it may serve us well to review (or study for the first time) a bit of history. There is one individual from the last century that is worth a closer look if you are interested in the concept of canceling somebody.... Continue Reading →
Getting Over is Not Getting By
When Using Others is Second Nature Hard times often call for tough decisions, but the decision to use another person is not getting by, it’s getting over. James Joyce’s short story “Two Gallants” presents the reader with two individuals who use others for their personal gain. The characters of Lenehan and Corley appear to move... Continue Reading →
When You Don’t Know If You Were Perfectly Fine
Dorothy Parker on Drinking, Desire, and Lost Nights Drinking a little too much alcohol at one time has been known to induce a bit of amnesia. Those of us who have been known to drink a bit too much on occasion can attest to this. Those of you who haven't made this mistake please trust... Continue Reading →
An Author’s Gambler
Alexi Ivanovich and the Mind of a Gambler A good number of stories that are centered on gambling tend to either glamorize or demonize. The protagonist is often portrayed as an individual we should either envy or pity. One exception to these extremes is Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Gambler. Dostoevsky’s protagonist is a gambler we neither... Continue Reading →
The Purpose of a $.50 Book
A teacher in high school taught us that a reader, a serious one, should always, "read with a purpose." That lesson had a profound impact on how I approached both fiction and nonfiction. It's an approach I still use whenever I open a book, my Nook, or the Libby app. But sometimes that purpose for... Continue Reading →
Interpretations, Intentions, and Chances
“The Road Not Taken” and Taking a Chance The new year brings resolutions, promises, and chances that can be ignored, compromised, and broken. A closer look at "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost is a good way to ring in the new year and discuss the idea of taking chances. Frost’s poem “The Road... Continue Reading →
Reels, Records, & Reads 
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