Tag Archives: Harry Potter

2022: My Year in Books: The Infographic

Happy New Year, everyone! I am once again assembling the “reading nerd data” in an upcoming post. I love charts. And behind every chart is a great spreadsheet. I guess I just love spreadsheets. Meanwhile, as is my tradition, I … Continue reading

Posted in News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

The Sloo/Slow/Sluff of Despond: Today’s Word of the Day and a Spiritual Truth in John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress

Today’s word of the day arrives as I am rereading John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress: I do not always find the Word of the Day terribly enlightening, in part because Merriam-Webster only gives a brief etymology. And it is the stories … Continue reading

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 23 Comments

2021: My Year in Books: The Infographic

Happy New Year Eve everyone! I will have some fun putting together the “nerd data” in an upcoming post–including more charts! Gotta have charts. And behind every chart is a great spreadsheet! Stay tuned for 01/10/22. Meanwhile, I wanted to … Continue reading

Posted in News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Thing about Riding Centaurs: A Note on Narnia, Harry Potter, Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles, and the Black Stallion

As a child reading in a bed surrounded by acres of horse-less fields, I was completely taken up by the Black Stallion series by Walter Farley. Marooned survivors of a shipwreck, city kid Alec Ramsay befriends an untameable stallion, whom he … Continue reading

Posted in Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 40 Comments

A Conversation about Mary Doria Russell’s The Sparrow with Michael Boyce (Geek4 Podcast) and Emily Strand (Potterversity Podcast)

I recently had a chance to sit down with a couple of thoughtful and funny folks to talk about a book that was entirely absent from my bookshelf. Emily Strand is an artist, Roman Catholic liturgist, and American educator, well … Continue reading

Posted in News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Thieves of Time and Waking Wonder: Writing as Discovery and the Stone-Carver’s Art

After weeks of too little sleep, I have had two terrible half-nights awake. These torturous midnight hours of hazy, half-insomniac puzzles and quandaries and obsessions, the darkness that infuses weariness into the bone-soul of life… I would purchase a single … Continue reading

Posted in Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Share with Me a Woman’s Voice on Shakespeare, with Thoughts on The Merchant of Venice

Yes, I know, it is kind of a strange request: Share with Me a Woman’s Voice on Shakespeare. Moreover, it is one that I cannot necessarily follow up on fully. But let me explain. The other day, I finished up … Continue reading

Posted in Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Texmoot 2021 Call for Papers and Conversations (Feb 13th, 2021)

One advantage of our online environment is that we now have some options for attending conferences that we would otherwise miss. On Feb 6th, for example, is the free Urbana Theological Seminary online Tolkien conference, with guest speakers Carlie W. … Continue reading

Posted in News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

2020: A Year of Reading: The Nerd Bit, with Charts

“No book is really worth reading at the age of ten which is not equally – and often far more – worth reading at the age of fifty and beyond.”~ C.S. Lewis “On Stories” 2020 was my first full year … Continue reading

Posted in Original Research, Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

2020: My Year in Books: The Infographic

Happy New Year everyone! I will have some fun putting together the data in an upcoming post, including some new charts. I love charts. Meanwhile, I wanted to share the Goodreads “My Year in Books” infographic. I’m pleased to say … Continue reading

Posted in News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments