Christmas – Jacke Wilson

July 23, 2023

The History of Literature #470 — Two Christmas Days – A Holiday Story by Ida B. Wells

Legendary anti-lynching crusader and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells (1862-1931) is best known for her diligent research and brave and compelling journalism. But she was also a feature writer for both black-owned and white-owned newspapers, and her talents were not just limited to nonfiction. In this episode, Jacke reads and discusses a rare example Continue reading

Arts, Authors, books, novelists

Christmas, Ida B. Wells, journalism, Literature, Short Stories

March 28, 2022

The History of Literature #368 – The Story of the Nativity (with Stephen Mitchell)

Stephen Mitchell has translated or adapted some of the world’s most beautiful and spiritually rich texts, including The Gospel According to Jesus, The Book of Job, Gilgamesh, Tao Te Ching, Bhagavad Gita, The Iliad, The Odyssey, Beowulf, The Selected Poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke, Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet, and The Way of Forgiveness. Continue reading

Arts, Authors, books, history of literature

Christmas, Nativity, Religion, stephen mitchell, Translation

January 3, 2019

The History of Literature #172 – Holiday Movies (with Brian Price)

http://traffic.megaphone.fm/ADL1809357435.mp3 Seasons Greetings! In this episode, Jacke attempts to recover from last week’s gloominess with something lighter and cheerier: a trip to the movies! Holiday movies dominate screens big and little during the month of December – but what do they do to us? How do they work? What separates a good holiday movie from Continue reading

Arts

Christmas, holiday movies, jesus, santa claus

December 23, 2017

The History of Literature #124 – James Joyce’s “The Dead” (Part 2)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:23:20 — 57.5MB) | Embed Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Google Play | Stitcher | RSS | More In this second part of a two-part episode, we look at the resounding conclusion of James Joyce’s masterpiece “The Dead,” which contains some of the finest prose ever written in the English language. Be warned: this episode, which runs from Gabriel’s speech to the Continue reading

Arts, Authors, books, Fiction, history of literature, novelists, Podcast, Writing

Christmas, gabriel conroy, Ireland, james joyce, Short Stories, the dead

December 24, 2015

A Jacke Wilson Holiday (Restless Mind Episode 10)

Jacke offers some holiday thoughts on loneliness, his failures with women and the theater, and a teary trip to the Nutcracker. Happy Holidays! Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 40:35 — 28.5MB) Subscribe: iTunes | Android | RSS | More Subscribe Options Continue reading

Arts, history of literature, Podcast, restless mind show

ballet, ballet dad, Christmas, fiddler on the roof, Holidays, jacke wilson fails with women, nutcracker

December 16, 2015

Little Black Dress? Yes. Little Black Penguin Classics? Also Yes!

Some things are so classy they just never go out of style. Like little black dresses, and little black classics from Penguin Books. Here’s another gift idea for this holiday season (along with Edward Gorey). Eighty Penguin Classics, presented in bite-sized form (i.e., novellas, short essays, selections of poems, or excerpted passages from longer books). Continue reading

books

Arts, Christmas, great books, holiday gift ideas, penguin books, presents, Publishing

December 25, 2014

Melancholy Christmas… what to do when it’s almost over

Dear Readers, Oh, it’s been a good Christmas season here on the Jacke blog, although I’ve been struck by how much sadness, longing, and ache there is out there. Let’s call it the human, grown-up side of Christmas. The kids have their joy and excitement; the adults watch them bouncing around with their new presents Continue reading

Authors, Fiction, Novellas, Podcast, The Jacke Wilson Show, Writing

Ache, Christmas, james joyce, John Huston, Longing, Melancholy, Sadness, the dead

December 24, 2014

Christmas Is a Time to Read-Joyce: The Dead

[Note: It’s here! Christmas Eve! And we’ve been running our own version of an advent calendar here on the Jacke Blog: reading one Dubliners story per day until today, when we reach “The Dead,” one of the most celebrated works in all literature. So cozy up to the fireplace, but on a little scratchy old Continue reading

Authors, Fiction, Writing

Christmas, dubliners, Fiction, james joyce, Short Stories, the dead

December 23, 2014

Christmas Is a Time to Read-Joyce: Grace

[Note: We’re reading one of James Joyce’s Dubliners stories each day until we get to “The Dead” on Christmas Eve. You can read more about the project on the first day’s installment. If you’re arriving late, fear not: it’s not too late to join us!] GRACE TWO GENTLEMEN who were in the lavatory at the time Continue reading

Authors, Fiction, Writing

Christmas, dubliners, Fiction, grace, james joyce, Short Stories

December 22, 2014

A Christmas Full of Longing and Ache

Friend of the blog georgetteann has a lovely post on Christmas music over at her site, A Walk on the Bright Side: As my mind drifted away from the conversation at our table and focused on the music, I began to notice I knew almost every song in his repertoire by heart. Some songs were Continue reading

Writing

Charles Brown, Christmas, Frank Sinatra, grandfather, kids and grownups, sad holiday music, WWII