Books

Author Interview – Alexander Raphael

Alexander Raphael discusses his new (third) book, his place in the literary world, the power and challenges of writing daily. His first book of short stories – THE SUMMER OF MADNESS – is famous for moving, funny, heartbreaking, informative, and utterly captivating plots. His second book – ILLUSIONS, DELUSIONS – is famous for a wide range of characters, twisted and...

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Literature is not innocent

“When one sees one of my pictures, one asks oneself this simple question, “What does it mean?” It does not mean anything, because mystery means nothing either, it is unknowable,” said Rene Magritte about his painting The Lovers. As you understand, we’ll talk about surrealism, but not about Rene Magritte in particular, although he was one of the most plagiarized artists,...

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Author Interview – John W. Howell

We chatted with John W. Howell about his new novel Eternal Road: The final stop, the transformation of the heroes, and the meaning behind historical and supernatural elements. 1. What is the significance of the book’s title Eternal Road? The title came to me one day while I was writing one of the scenes. Eternal Road is the avenue to...

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Aspects of the Novel

No book worth its salt is meant to put you to sleep, it’s meant to make you jump out of bed in your underwear and run and beat the author’s brains out. Bohumil Hrabal, Czech novelist There’s a book called Aspects of the Novel, a series of lectures from E. M. Forster, written in 1927. I haven’t read it myself...

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Author Interview – Sabina Gabrielli Carrara

I spoke with Sabina Gabrielli Carrara, the author of The Last Witch, about her tricky plot progression, whether she hates this century or no, and what comes next.  CAUGHT BETWEEN MYSTERY and CRIME 1: We tend to know you as the author of the blog Truly Madly Ordinary and thriller/crime novels Field of Lies and Black Souls. At the end of...

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Shame-less by Nadia Bolz-Weber

(nonfiction) #takeawaykeys If we can share our story with someone who responds with empathy and understanding, shame can’t survive. Brené Brown, Daring Greatly Alert! Long post, if you can’t read it now, save for later! This book is for women who are almost-enough, who are struggling every day of their lives to be perfect, to deliver the image of the...

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Africa’s warriors: women in folklore

Written by Nathaniel Postell Women are warriors! A fact that becomes abundantly clear by studying African legends and folklore. These fiercely independent women help shape the world, inspiring countless interpretations, even presenting themselves in recent pop-culture. The wildly successful Marvel Studios movie Black Panther features a group of gifted women warriors inspired by the Dahomey Amazons – an all-female military...

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Urmuz – the genius beneath the boffoon

Written by Andreea Padurean (Her Goodreads Profile – here) One of the most controversial figures of the Romanian Literature – Demetru Dem or Demetrescu-Buzău, known as Urmuz, a genius who left behind a literary work of 50 pages at most. His pen name (Urmuz) was interpreted in various ways, one of the attributed meanings being ‘I amuse’. And yes, he amused...

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