THE ELEPHANT Carlos Drummond de Andrade With my scant resources I make an elephant. I count on some wood from old furniture to prop him up. And…… Read more “An imposing and fragile mass”
Month: October 2018
Carlos Drummond de Andrade
Carlos Drummond de Andrade (October 31, 1902 – August 17, 1987) was a Brazilian writer. He studied Pharmacy at the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, in Belo Horizonte, but never…… Read more “Carlos Drummond de Andrade”
To light a fire in the night
FIRE IN THE NIGHT Hélio Pellegrino (tr. Juliana Brina) We’ll light a fire in the night. Come here, hold this newspaper scrap, while I strike the match.…… Read more “To light a fire in the night”
Hélio Pellegrino
Hélio Pellegrino (1924 — 1988) was a Brazilian writer and psychoanalyst. He studied Medicine at the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, and wrote for several literary supplements. He was friends with the…… Read more “Hélio Pellegrino”
Nonfiction November| 2018
Hi, folks! I can’t believe it’s almost November! As in previous years, in this garden of mine, it is time not only for German Lit books, but…… Read more “Nonfiction November| 2018”
O cursed human voice, violin of flesh and blood,
Dear Violet, The short-story “A Wicked Voice”, published in the collections Hauntings (1890) and The Virgin of the Seven Daggers (1962, posthumously published), combines elements of a Faustian pact,…… Read more “O cursed human voice, violin of flesh and blood,”
Vernon Lee
Vernon Lee (pen name of Violet Paget, October 14, 1856 – February 13, 1935) was a British writer. Born in France to cosmopolitan British parents, they had a nomadic childhood…… Read more “Vernon Lee”
Panic calls out cowardice, and cowardice cruelty
Dear Elizabeth, The novella Lois the Witch (1859) is a fictionalised account of the Salem witch hunt, as well as a sharp meditation on the thin line…… Read more “Panic calls out cowardice, and cowardice cruelty”
Elizabeth Gaskell
Elizabeth Gaskell (Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, née Stevenson; 1810 – 1865) was an English writer. After her mother’s death, one-year-old Gaskell was sent to live with her aunt. Encouraged by her…… Read more “Elizabeth Gaskell”
You’ve stayed where you were
Dear Agatha, Absent in the Spring (1944) is a character study and a psychological exploration of self-denial, crossed through by a growing sense of unease at each…… Read more “You’ve stayed where you were”
Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie (Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, née Miller; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer. She was home-schooled and taught herself to read from…… Read more “Agatha Christie”
This look of sadness would last perhaps for a minute
Dear Amy, Jill (1884) is a fast-pacing coming of age story with subtle social commentary and strong feminist undertones. The novel centres on the eponymous heroine, Jill,…… Read more “This look of sadness would last perhaps for a minute”
Amy Dillwyn
Amy Dillwyn (Elizabeth Amy Dillwyn, 1845 – 1935) was a Welsh writer. Inspired in part by George Eliot’s Middlemarch, Dillwyn became a feminist writer, and wrote some of…… Read more “Amy Dillwyn”
No Coward Soul Is Mine
Five poems by Emily Brontë, from the book The Night is Darkening Round Me (2015) * No coward soul is mine No coward soul is mine No trembler in…… Read more “No Coward Soul Is Mine”
Emily Brontë
Emily Brontë (Emily Jane Brontë, 30 July 1818 – 19 December 1848) was an English writer. She published under the pen name Ellis Bell. She was educated mostly at home by her father…… Read more “Emily Brontë”
German Lit Month, Library Loot & Dewey’s Readathon
Hi, folks, Summer is definitely gone, Victober has just started, and I have here a new stack of books freshly borrowed from my local library. Here is…… Read more “German Lit Month, Library Loot & Dewey’s Readathon”