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Guest Review: Florence and Giles’ By John Harding
Guest Posts , Latest Posts / January 11, 2012

Turning the Screw…. Florence & Giles is an intriguing Gothic tale, well thought-out and deftly plotted. It owes much of its inspiration to Henry James’s ‘The Turn of the Screw’ and is a tribute to that classic story of misguided and obsessive madness. Set in remote and crumbling New England mansion, twelve-year-old orphan Florence is neglected by her guardian uncle and banned from any formal education as her absent uncle has strong opinions on the dangers of a clever woman. Ignored by the minimal staff of the house and left to her own devices, she finds the abandoned library, teaches herself to read and devours books in secret – she appears a resourceful and intelligent young heroine. Keeping her self-taught accomplishments a secret from all, she considers them her own personal triumph, seeing herself as literary and articulate against all the odds. She insists on narrating her own story in a language of her own invention. This contrived language is a little awkward to get used to. Her insistence on turning nouns and adjectives to verbs and verbs to nouns “no budgery was to be had. I was in a weepery of frustration” – can rather grate and irritate at first, but…

Fun Facts Friday: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Classics , Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / December 30, 2011

This week I reviewed The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, one of my favorite authors. While writing my post I found some interesting facts about the story. 1 ) Stevenson developed the story while a teenager. 2 ) Stevenson’s stepson, Lloyd Osbourne said that the first draft took maybe three days to for Stevenson to write. 3 ) Supposedly Stevenson burned the first draft (even though there are no evidence) so he’ll be forced to start the writing process from scratch. 4 ) Re-writing took Stevenson anywhere from three to six days, but continued to revise it for four to six weeks afterwards. 5 ) The book was initially sold for one shilling in the UK and one dollar in the US in paperback format. 6 ) The American publisher Bill Clinton published the book four days before it appeared in the UK (published by Longmans). 7 ) Stores would not stock the book until it was reviewed in The Times. After a favorable review thought the book sold almost 40,000 copies in six months. 8 ) Over 250,000 copies were sold by 1901. 9 ) For many people this book was the…

Thoughts on: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
4 Stars , Classics , Fiction , Latest Posts / December 28, 2011

As time goes on, this novella could be read in several ways. There is the most known one, that of split personality, but also could be a pathological angle of investigating the nature of mental illness. In these days, where science, technology and medicine is much more advanced, the story could also be read as a warning on the extreme use of mind altering chemicals, drugs or alcohol and the self destructive properties of such actions.

The Book Review Blog Carnival

Welcome to the December 4, 2011 edition of book review blog carnival. Book Reviews Zohar presents Thoughts on: 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami posted at Man of la Book. Zohar presents Thoughts on: The Family Affair by Leon H. Gildin posted at Man of la Book. Sarah Ahmad presents Frankenstein posted at The Book Nook. Zohar presents Thoughts on: The Emperor of Lies by Steve Sem-Sandberg posted at Man of la Book. Books Raphael presents Great American Stories Ten Unabridged Classics posted at Extreme eBooks, Audiobooks and Software Downloads, saying, “These ten classic stories from four of America’s greatest authors of the 19th and early 20th century were selected for their literary importance as well as their dramatic oral qualities. The stories include Mark Twain’s “The One-Million Pound Bank Note,” “A Visit to Niagara,” and “A Mysterious Visit;” Stephen Crane’s “The Blue Hotel;” Ambrose Bierce’s “The Eyes of the Panther;” and Jack London’s “The Love of Life” and “To Build a Fire.”” Fiction Sandor presents 4. Eddard: The Burger King Cometh! posted at Mummers Farce, saying, “Looking at the Song of Ice and Fire series with a particularly juvenile bent.” Non Fiction Kevin presents 7 Wealth Building Strategies | Invest It…

Author Q&A with Yona Zeldis McDonough
Author Q&A , Latest Posts / November 30, 2011

Author Yona Zeldis McDonough (web­site) wrote The Cats in the Doll Shop (my thoughts) which not only did I like, but my daughter (who is turning 7 today) liked as well. My daughter had some questions for Ms. McDonough and here is the best Author Q&A ever – that of a proud father. Q.Why did you put cats in the book? A. Many years ago, my husband and used to watch the comings and goings of a stray, pregnant cat outside the back window of our apartment in NYC. The cat had her kittens in an unused dresser drawer that had been stowed on a terrace. When the owner discovered the kittens, she swept them off the terrace with a broom. Two died, and three survived; one of the survivors broke his leg in the fall. The broken limb atrophied and eventually fell off but the three legged kitten managed to get around anyway. We worried about how he would manage, and left food out for him. He became surprisingly agile for a three legged cat and we came to love him for his spirit and his resilience. He was the model for the cat in my story. | Q. I…

Manly Holiday Book Guide
Latest Posts / November 28, 2011

Ever wanted to know what to get the men in your life besides tools, a silly tie or something which will end up in the attic on January 1? Here are the answers to your prayers. For the “I want to read just one book I could talk about in parties” type of guy: 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami For the “I like emotional books but want people to think I’m reading a war novel” manly man: The Polski Affair by Leon H. Gildin For your “I like intellectual books” boyfriend who wants to impress you: Georg Letham: Physician and Murderer by Ernst Weiss For the “hey dude, it’s a classic” guy:The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller For your uncle that grew a stomach and converted to Buddhism: Across Many Mountains by Yangzom Brauen or Fire Monks by Colleen Morton Busch For your second cousin that keeps saying how he hates the classics: Dracula by Bram Stoker For your neighbor that decorates his house the day after Halloween: Jacob T. Marley by R. William Bennett For your long lost cousin. living in a log cabin and still believes that the South shall rise:The Civil War: A Visual History For your brother…

Fun Facts Friday Special Thursday Edition: Thanksgiving
Latest Posts , Opinion / November 24, 2011

This is a post I wrote a few years back for NJ.com titled ” Thanksgiving Myth vs. Fact“. I thought it would be fun to re-post it today with pictures from a trip my family and I took to Plymouth MA a few years back.. Hope you enjoy it even though it isn’t a “bookish” post. ====================== Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for many reasons. It’s none secular (which means everybody celebrates it), it’s not commercialized, the food is good and the idea behind the holiday is fantastic. We all learned about this holiday at school, and if we didn’t I’m sure after a year or two in America you learned all you think you should. A few weeks ago I took my family to Plymouth, MA for a long weekend, a great trip if you’ve never been. I bought my 4 year old daughter a book about the Mayflower so she’ll know what she’ll be looking at (and hopefully get her a bit excited) and learned a few things myself. Myth: The first Thanksgiving was a religious based occasion Fact: The first Thanksgiving was a three day festival which included drinking, gambling and sports. If it was a religious…

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