Tag Archives: vampires

John Donne’s “The Flea”

Posted on October 30, 2018 by

Part of the great fun of teaching is having students bring work to me. In just one class students have had me scurrying to Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur, J.R.R. Tolkien‘s “The Last Ship,” Beowulf, Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, Bruce Elliot’s “Wolves Don’t Cry,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Bluebeard the Hipster Serial Groove Killer: A Revolting Rhyme

Posted on September 5, 2017 by

Last year I was fortunate to be able to work with Dr. Dimitra Fimi and a team of students at teachers at Signum University. Her course, “Folkloric Transformations,” is a fascinating look at werewolf and vampyre tales from the perspective … Continue reading →

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

Stephen King on the Supernatural

Posted on April 20, 2017 by

On Tuesday I spent time thinking about my Stickin’ Huge Awesome Novel Winter Awesome Read (SHANWAR) read for 2017, Stephen King’s The Stand. As the snows of winter pen me in, I want a big, long, great book that I … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

From the Mouths of Atheists: Faith Lessons from Terry Pratchett

Posted on April 6, 2017 by

In creating the Discworld, Terry Pratchett set for himself an interesting problem for an atheist of his era: he created a world where gods are a reality. From an artist’s perspective, this is no particular problem at all. Pratchett made what … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Memorable Quotes, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

I Am Legend: Book vs. Film(s)

Posted on September 19, 2016 by

Can a film be better than the book? It depends on how we define “better,” but book-lovers tend to say two sorts of things about adaptations: “The book was a richer experience.” “The film adaptation was not faithful to the … Continue reading →

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

Lewis, Wagner, and Frankenstein: Literary Accident or Reader’s Providence?

Posted on August 31, 2016 by

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what I call “Pilgrim’s Providence.” This is when we as travelers embrace the challenges and opportunities that come along our pathway as a kind of opportunity provided for us. It is a perspective … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

What are Readers Actually Reading? Fantasy in America

Posted on June 5, 2013 by

Bestseller lists can tell us a lot about the books people buy, but they might not tell us as much about what books people actually read. Genre fiction, from Fantasy to Mysteries to Romance, is typically off the radar of … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments