Category Archives: Fiction
Grow Up
Grow Up by Ben Brooks is a dirty, dirty book. It is a wonderfully filthy book. I think I might have to buy it. The only things the teenagers in this book know how to do are drink, do drugs, do each other and … Continue reading
Filed under Book Review, Fiction
Heartwood 2:6 – Referential Reading: Romain Rolland
Books lead to other books, as any avid reader knows. Some more so than others. In EPL’s first “Everett Reads” program, back in 2004, we read Dai Sijie’s Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. Given that the title alludes to another … Continue reading
Filed under Book Lists, Everett Reads, Fiction, General Fiction, Heartwood, Historical Fiction
Books You Have Always Meant to Read: The Scarlet Letter
It contributes greatly towards a man’s moral and intellectual health, to be brought into habits of companionship with individuals unlike himself, who care little for his pursuits, and whose sphere and abilities he must go out of himself to appreciate. … Continue reading
Filed under Book Discussions & Events, Fiction, Historical Fiction
Found in Translation
Of the many things I regret not having mastered in life, the ability to read and speak another language well is a major one. Sure I took German in high school and, don’t laugh, Latin in college. But other than … Continue reading
Filed under Book Review, Fiction, General Fiction
Mr. Peabody’s Corner of Research and Revelation: Doc Holliday’s Wild West
Today’s topic of interest is a steampunk novel of the Wild West by Michael D. Resnick titled The Doctor and the Kid: a Weird West Tale. In Resnick’s steampunk universe, first described in The Buntline Special, the United States ends … Continue reading
Filed under Fiction, Historical Fiction, History, Memoir & Biography, Mr. Peabody, Nonfiction
Who in the World is Hari Kunzru?
Hari Kunzru has kept a low profile even though his reviewers marvel over his wildly original fiction. But with his latest novel Gods Without Men winning critical acclaim, it’s time to get to know this author whose work you may have … Continue reading
Filed under Book Review, Fiction, General Fiction
Drowning Instinct
Word to the wise: if you want to avoid going to the loony bin, put all sharp objects out of reach. Also stay out of the way of your psychopath father and drunken mother. Ilsa J Bick’s Drowning Instinct is chock full of … Continue reading
Filed under Book Review, Fiction, Young Adult
Zombies: New and Improved, with 20% Less Brains
One of the things I always enjoyed about vampire movies is that the vampires had to follow a (somewhat flexible) set of rules. It’s comforting to know that if you haven’t invited a vampire into your house then he cannot … Continue reading
Filed under Book Lists, Fiction, Horror
Heartwood 2:5 – Lumen
Lumen, originally published in 1872, is the first science fiction novel to address the concept of relativity (30 years before Einstein) and to describe possible life forms on other planets. The book is structured as five dialogues between Lumen, the spirit … Continue reading
Filed under Book Review, Fiction, Heartwood, Science Fiction & Fantasy
Books You Have Always Meant to Read: The Secret Agent
But what is one to say to an act of destructive ferocity so absurd as to be incomprehensible, inexplicable, almost unthinkable; in fact, mad? Madness alone is truly terrifying, inasmuch as you cannot placate it either by threats, persuasion, or … Continue reading
Filed under Book Discussions & Events, Fiction


