Mysteries Require Odes, Not Emails

Mysteries Require Odes, Not Emails

The Saint Mary’s Book of Christian Verse Chosen and Introduced by Edward Short. Foreword by Dana Gioia. Gracewing, 2022. Paperback, 412 pages, $25. Reviewed by David G. Bonagura, Jr. In a technocratic and materialist age, an individual or institution’s attitude toward...
Every Mann

Every Mann

Thomas Mann: New and Selected Stories By Thomas Mann. Translated by Damion Searls. Liveright, 2023. Hardcover, 256 pages, $40.00. Reviewed by Joshua Hren. Thomas Mann towers intimidatingly over the twentieth century’s literary landscape, not least because “the icy...
Lofty Prose in a New Translation of Beowulf

Lofty Prose in a New Translation of Beowulf

Beowulf: A New Verse Translation Translated by Ben J. Reinhard.  Cluny Media, 2022. Paperback, 278 pages, $18.95. Reviewed by Jonathan B. Himes. To describe Ben Reinhard’s approach to his new verse translation of Beowulf, the back cover offers the following keywords:...
Saving the West By Keeping It Real

Saving the West By Keeping It Real

How to Save the West: Ancient Wisdom for 5 Modern Crises By Spencer Klavan. Regnery, 2023. Hardcover, 256 pages, $29.99. Reviewed by Auguste Meyrat. Charting the decline of the West is something of a popular pastime for conservatives. Even though people today live in...
Reagan as Peacemaking Cold Warrior

Reagan as Peacemaking Cold Warrior

The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the World on the Brink By William Inboden. Dutton, 2022. Hardcover, 608 pages, $35. Reviewed by Jason C. Phillips. Mikhail Gorbachev’s recent death has led to a renewed interest in the Cold War, making the recent...
Oh Yeah Baby Eat It

Oh Yeah Baby Eat It

Spending the Winter  By Joseph Bottum. St. Augustine’s Press, 2022. Paperback, 80 pages, $13. Reviewed by Robert Grant Price. “Do I really want to read this?” “Is this a good way to spend my time?” These are fair questions to ask yourself whenever thinking about...