Writers
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The History of Literature #513 — The Writers of Northern Ireland (with Alexander Poots) | My Last Book with Laura Lee
The literary world has long celebrated the incredible contributions of Ireland and its writers, with a special focus on Dublin-centric writers like James Joyce and W.B. Yeats. Meanwhile, Northern Ireland has been quietly turning out some excellent work as well, thanks to figures like C.S. Lewis and Seamus Heaney, among many others. Are there common Continue reading
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The History of Literature #489 — Schopenhauer (aka The Tunnel and The Hole)
“It is difficult to find happiness within oneself,” said the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), “but it is impossible to find it anywhere else.” In spite of his pessimism – or perhaps because of it – Schopenhauer, who was virtually unknown until the last few years of his life, went on to influence generations of Continue reading
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The History of Literature #431 – Langston Hughes
Very few writers have had the influence or importance of Langston Hughes (1902?-1967). Best known for poems like “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” “I, Too,” and “The Weary Blues,” Hughes was also a widely read novelist, short story writer, and essayist – and his promotion of Black people and culture became central to the cultural Continue reading
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The History of Literature #373 – Roald Dahl
Born in Wales to parents of Norwegian descent, Roald Dahl (1916-1990) grew up to become one of England’s most famous writers. Although Dahl was an accomplished writer of short stories for grownups, he is today known best for his well-loved children’s novels, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox, BFG, Matilda, and Danny, Continue reading
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Restless Mind Show #7 – Literature and Loneliness
On the eve of a holiday, author and host of the History of Literature podcast Jacke Wilson considers the consolations that total immersion in literature can provide. Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:29 — 19.9MB) Subscribe: iTunes | Android | RSS | More Subscribe Options Continue reading
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The Fire Alarm (A History of Jacke in 100 Objects #30)
We were in the middle of a dorm war. Every morning between one and three a.m., a resident of some enemy dorm pulled our fire alarm. Presumably someone from our dorm was doing the same at some dorm across campus. In this war I was a mere civilian. A pacifist, a bystander, a protestor. And every night Continue reading
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Thanksgiving Week 4: The Readers!
We’ve spent Thanksgiving week giving thanks to the Kids, the Elders, and Life’s Sweet Partners. That covers most ground (sorry friends, coworkers, and facebook people I’m pretending to recall better than I actually do – maybe next year!). Or at least it covers most ground personally. Professionally, I still owe someone special. My enormous debt of Continue reading
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Virginia Woolf on How to Read a Book
Via Maria Popova’s Brainpickings (of course!), we get this amazing overview of Virginia Woolf’s amazing advice on how to read a book. The whole post is worth reading, but here’s a taste: To read a novel is a difficult and complex art. You must be capable not only of great fineness of perception, but of Continue reading
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“Help! My family hates my pen name!”: The Response
Wonderful Readers! You have proven yourselves to be some of the wisest and most thoughtful people I “know.” Yesterday I posted a comment from a Wonderful Reader struggling with her family’s objection to her pen name. She had an interesting twist on the issue – and your comments were amazing. For everyone who’s arriving late to Continue reading
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What if your family hates your pen name? A request for advice!
A very interesting question came in from a Wonderful Reader: I have a question. My pen name is my grandmother’s name. It took a long time and a lot of thought to chose that name, but now various members of the family (grandchildren and great-grandchildren of all things — she’s been dead for over 60 Continue reading
Jacke Wilson 