Shining a Light on Dark Deeds
The Moral Imagination in the Mystery Novels of Sally Wright by Ashlee Cowles When it comes to fictional works of the moral imagination, fantasy novels tend to receive the most attention from critics who believe literature plays a vital role in the conservation of the...’Tis the season!
No, not that season. All Hallows’ Eve approaches—a perfect time to read or re-read one of Russell Kirk’s Ghostly Tales. We recently posted The Surly Sullen Bell (along with Ex Tenebris) here, and there are more stories, links, and commentary linked at Ghostly...Virgil, Guide to the Perplexed
The Aeneid by Virgil, translated by David Ferry. University of Chicago Press, 2017. Hardcover, 437 pages, $35.C. S. Lewis once said of Virgil’s Aeneid that “No man who has once read it with full perception remains an adolescent.” That was certainly true of my first...Lectures on What Can’t Be Taught
Literature Class by Julio Cortázar. New Directions, 2017. Paperback, 280 pages, $19. The question of whether or not creative writing is something that can be taught isn’t a perennial one, at least not explicitly or directly. The American MFA program, with its tens of...Mark Twain, Huckster
How Not to Get Rich: The Financial Misadventures of Mark Twain by Alan Pell Crawford. Houghton Mifflin, 2017. Hardcover, 240 pages, $27.How Not to Get Rich: I could write a book on that subject! Happily, Alan Pell Crawford, author mostly recently of the thoughtful and...Organizing Victory
Stanton: Lincoln’s War Secretary by Walter Stahr. Simon & Schuster, 2017. Hardcover, 768 pages, $35. Reviewed by Kyle Sammin The Civil War is often remembered from the point of view of the soldiers. Their stories of strategic genius and individual heroism on both...Budziszewski Lecture in Grand Rapids
The Society for Law and Culture is joining with the Christian Legal Society in sponsoring a lecture by J. Budziszewski titled “Natural Law: Why and So What?” The event will be held at Cooley Law School in Grand Rapids, MI, on Thursday, November 2, 2017, beginning at...Which Alexander?
The First European: A History of Alexander in the Age of Empire by Pierre Briant, Translated by Nicholas Elliott. Harvard University Press, 2017. Hardcover, 496 pages, $35. After Alexander the Great died, a wilderness of legends about the boy-conqueror flourished. In...Reclaiming Corrington
The Southern Philosopher: Collected Essays of John William Corrington edited by Allen Mendenhall. University of North Georgia Press, 2017. Paperback, $30. I’m guessing it was spring of 1991; Andrew Lytle was on my college campus to receive an honorary Doctor of...
There are metaphorical hills on which I would be willing to die. The Oxford comma is one of them.
So easy to forget that the best way to educate yourself is to read great works of literature and philosophy, then talk about them. Bring back the salon!