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Review of “The Beckoning Fair One” by Oliver Onions Halloween Countdown

Plot: Forty-four-year-old novelist Paul Oleron rents the first floor of a house to finish his novel, Romilly Bishop. He has fifteen chapters. He needs a quiet, pleasant place to concentrate. The house needs a bit of sprucing up. He hires people to paint and then moves in some furniture he has in storage that hisContinue reading “Review of “The Beckoning Fair One” by Oliver Onions Halloween Countdown”

Review of “The Ash-Tree” by M. R. James Halloween Countdown

2) “The Ash-Tree” by M. R. James In describing the country estate of Castringham Hall in Suffolk, the narrator remarks, “The one feature that marked out the house from a score of others is gone. As you looked at it from the park, you saw [in times past] on the right a great old ash-treeContinue reading “Review of “The Ash-Tree” by M. R. James Halloween Countdown”

Review of “The Ambitious Guest” by Nathaniel Hawthorne: Halloween Countdown

This is the first of what I thirty-one reviews of horror/ghost short stories I have planned for October as a Halloween countdown. Enjoy and wish me luck. 1) “The Ambitious Guest” by Nathaniel Hawthorne A family runs an inn in a remote area of the White Mountains of New Hampshire. They are happy. Because theirContinue reading “Review of “The Ambitious Guest” by Nathaniel Hawthorne: Halloween Countdown”

Review of “The Last Word: The New York Times Book of Obituaries and Farewells A Celebration of Unusual Lives” Edited by Marvin Siegel

The Stuff: This book is a collection of approximately 90 obituaries and write-ups from the New York Times Magazine. The focus is on interesting lives, regardless of whether the person was famous or lived an everyday life. Not all are saints. One is a reputed gangster, whom one acquaintance referred to as “a nice man.”Continue reading “Review of “The Last Word: The New York Times Book of Obituaries and Farewells A Celebration of Unusual Lives” Edited by Marvin Siegel”

Review of “The Man in the White Suit” (1951)

Another departure from our usual monster/horror movie for Saturday night is this black-and-white satire of the idealistic individual who upsets everybody’s applecart. It brought to mind a bit of Ayn Rand’s Anthem, Rush’s 2112, and the end of the original Frankenstein movie, but added a bit of humor. Plot:Hapless Sidney Stratton (a really young AlecContinue reading “Review of “The Man in the White Suit” (1951)”

Review of “Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life” by Anne Lamott

The Stuff: This book consists of short, interrelated essays and anecdotes on writing and being a writer—being a human—grouped around larger themes. The parts are 1) Writing, 2) The Writing Frame of Mind, 3) Help Along the Way, 4) Publication and Other Reasons to Write, and 5) The Last Class. One of the essays inContinue reading “Review of “Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life” by Anne Lamott”

Flash Fiction Published: “Words to Live By”

A little early for Halloween, but a flash fiction piece of mine, “Words to Live By,” was published in an online magazine titled Danse Macabre. I always liked this silly little piece about a university professor who is friends with the ghost of a mariner from days gone by. The captain has a fondness forContinue reading “Flash Fiction Published: “Words to Live By””

Plunder: a Poem

A curious kitten Disappeared into the bush. She reappeared, a leaf in her mouth and Cobwebs over her ears.

Review of “The Frontiersman: The Real Life and Many Legends of Davy Crockett” by Mark Derr

The Stuff: This is a non-sensationalized biography of early American Davy Crockett (1786-1836), frontiersman and congressman, written by a distant relative. Author Mark Derr seeks to wade through the many myths and find the person behind the stories. He adopts a more-or-less neutral tone, neither excoriating nor lionizing the book’s subject. He openly admits, forContinue reading “Review of “The Frontiersman: The Real Life and Many Legends of Davy Crockett” by Mark Derr”

Review of “Pale Rider” (1985)

This was a departure from our usual Saturday pizza and bad movie fare, a Western with some supernatural flavor. Not to give too much away, but the bad guys got their comeuppance in spades. Or lead. Plot:In the beginning (not the last biblical reference to come), two things are happening. First, a group of menContinue reading “Review of “Pale Rider” (1985)”