… the next CSFF Blog Tour. On Monday we begin reviewing The Wolf of Tebron, a novel styled after C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia. A “unique reinvention of the traditional fairy tale,” its website states. Come back and – as the newsies used to say – read all about it.
Month: December 2010
The Pardon of Christmas
Here is a Christmas poem by G. K. Chesterton. Comments at the end. The Pardon of Christmas Roofed in with the snows of December It returns, it is left to us yet —A day: with one day to remember. —A day: with long days to forget. Undeterred, recurring, soft-footed It comes down o’er the world,…
Giants and Newsies
Years ago my siblings and I listened to a collection of Disney songs we rented from the library. There was one song I always liked – “Seize the Day”. I had no idea where the song came from, what story it belonged to, but it sounded like a fairytale. A man sang about opening the…
CSFF Blog Tour: The science, the scam, the history of Phrenology
Phrenology is the study of the structure of the skull to determine a person’s character and mental capacity. This pseudoscience is based on the false assumption that mental faculties are located in brain “organs” on the surface of the brain and can be detected by visible inspection of the skull. The Viennese physician Franz-Joseph Gall…
CSFF Blog Tour: Building Corenwald
Every fantasy world is a mixing and changing of real-world elements. Corenwald, the setting of The Charlatan’s Boy, is different in which elements are chosen. Unlike most fantasy worlds, Corenwald is more American than European, more modern than medieval. A few things in Corenwald do sound British – the constables, the public houses. But the…
CSFF Blog Tour: The Charlatan’s Boy
(Note: In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.) It’s a sad day in Corenwald when no one believes in feechies anymore. Specifically, it’s a sad day for Floyd Wendellson and his boy, Grady. The paying crowds pay them no longer. After making a living…
In Defense of a Commercial Racket
Recently, I’ve been having a recurring thought: Christmas is coming. This is followed by another recurring thought: I have to start Christmas shopping. Here I am, victim of the commercial racket they’ve made of Christmas. Every year we hear about the commercialization of Christmas. It’s practically a Yuletide tradition. The sentiment is entrenched in the…