The Good Earth, scholars agree, created sympathy for China in the oncoming war with Japan: “If China had not captured the American imagination, it might just have been possible to work out a more satisfactory Far Eastern policy,” but such works as The Good Earth, “infused with an understandable compassion for the suffering Chinese, didContinue reading “The Good Earth – Pearl S. Buck’s Love for China”
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Author spotlight – Ernest Hemingway
Every year in July, the Florida Keys have a unique celebration of author Ernest Hemingway, who lived and left a powerful legacy in the region. Its called “Hemingway Days” and according to the Florida Keys website, “scheduled events include a look-alike contest for stocky white-bearded men resembling Hemingway, readings and book signings, an awards ceremonyContinue reading “Author spotlight – Ernest Hemingway”
Chess Champions: Grandmaster Larry Evans’s influence on Bobby Fischer
Bobby Fischer is perhaps the most celebrated American chess player of the Twentieth Century. His latent talent is of no question, but understanding his success suggests going beyond his acumen and studying also those who influenced him. His friend and mentor Larry Evans is one such figure, and their long-standing friendship contributed to Fischer’s career.Continue reading “Chess Champions: Grandmaster Larry Evans’s influence on Bobby Fischer”
Author Spotlight – Maurice Sendak
Have you seen the Maurice Sendak Google Doodle that is up today? It celebrates what would have been his 85th Birthday. He passed away last year, but he will live on forever through his amazing illustrations and the legacy that he gave the world. Sendak’s love of books began when he was a child. HeContinue reading “Author Spotlight – Maurice Sendak”
Author Spotlight – F. Scott Fitzgerald
With all the buzz of the recent movie, The Great Gatsby, we thought we should spotlight F. Scott Fitzgerald this month so that you can learn a little bit about the man behind the story. After the success of his first novel, This Side of Paradise (1920), F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda becameContinue reading “Author Spotlight – F. Scott Fitzgerald”
Sigmund Freud – Civilization and its Discontents
Civilization and Discontents is considered one of Freud’s most important and widely read works (Gay, 1989). While it can be seen as political philosophy or anthropology, it is also a psychoanalytic explanation of religion. The main theme of the work is “the irremediable antagonism between the demands of instinct and the restrictions of civilization” (Strachey,Continue reading “Sigmund Freud – Civilization and its Discontents”
F. A. Hayek – Father of Neoliberalism
Road to Serfdom was first published in Britain by Routledge in March 1944, during World War II, and due to the book’s popularity during this time of paper rationing, Hayek jokingly called it “that unobtainable book” (Ebenstein, 2003). Consequently, the first British copy, as here pictured, is quite rare. The title for Road to SerfdomContinue reading “F. A. Hayek – Father of Neoliberalism”
Collecting Children’s Books
April 2nd is the birthday of author Hans Christian Anderson and each year, people around the world celebrate International Children’s Book Day in his honor. We would like to take a moment to talk about collecting children’s books in light of this special day. Children’s books are highly collectible. They’re immensely nostalgic for collectors, pleasantlyContinue reading “Collecting Children’s Books”
Gone with the Wind
Gone with the wind which had swept through Georgia,” says Scarlett O’Hara in Chapter 24 of the romantic historical novel. She uses the title phrase as she wonders whether her home plantation “Tara” still stands or is gone. The title reflects the loss of a lifestyle that existed in the American South before the CivilContinue reading “Gone with the Wind”
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Carson McCullers published The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1940) when she was twenty-three. It follows deaf John Singer and the people he encounters in a 1930s mill town in the US state of Georgia. The narrative primarily centers around John’s acquaintances, and McCullers enriches it through a limited-omniscient tone that is highly episodic. ChaptersContinue reading “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter”