Mary Daniels Brown

My mother always insisted that, as soon as I was old enough to sit up, she’d find me in my crib after my nap babbling away, with a Little Golden Book on my lap. I’ve had my nose in a book ever since. I grew up in a small town, with the tiny town library literally in my backyard. As an only child in an unhappy home, I found comfort and companionship in books. As an adult I wanted to be Harry Potter, although I admit I’m more Hermione. My life has been a series of research projects. Reading has taught me that human lives are deliciously messy and that “it’s complicated” isn’t a punchline.

Censorship and Invisibility: A Boomer Perspective

Censorship and Invisibility: A Boomer Perspective | Barbara Jones. Banned Books Week: September 22-28 In honor of Banned Books Week, Barbara Jones, director of the ALA (American Library Association) Office for Intellectual Freedom, offers a history lesson on book censorship over at Huffington Post. She recalls that, when she was an undergraduate at the University […]

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Monday Miscellany

Why GR’s new review rules are censorship – Some thoughts Late Friday (US time) Goodreads announced a change in review and shelving policy, and immediately started deleting readers’ reviews and shelves. In doing this they became censors. Limiting readers’ ability to discuss the cultural context of a book is censorship designed to promote authors’ interests.

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Monday Miscellany

11 Required Reading Books You Should Re-Read Now That You’re Older Madeleine Crum thinks you’d benefit from rereading these books that you were probably required to struggle through in English classes while growing up. I have actually reread several of these in recent years, and I agree with her assessment that they have much more

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Monday Miscellany

Amazon’s Kindle Matchbook Program Much of last week’s book-related news involved Amazon’s announcement of a plan to bundle ebooks and print versions of the same title. Here’s a lot of commentary: Amazon’s announcement The New York Times Publishers Weekly The Los Angeles Times College introducing online ‘Dead’ course I have avoided the zombie craze like

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Monday Miscellany

17 Most Screwed Up Relationships In Books From Oedipus and Jocasta to Anastasia and Christian Grey, here are the most dysfunctional book couples. Trust us, these people will make you feel good about your worst relationship. To which list I would add those kids from Flowers in the Attic. 20 Of The Biggest Dick Moves

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Hugo Rising: The nominees for science fiction’s best novel of 2013 find a new guard challenging the old

Hugo Rising: The nominees for science fiction’s best novel of 2013 find a new guard challenging the old – Arts – The Austin Chronicle the Hugos maintain a certain representative importance, presenting what many in the greater publishing industry see as the face of science fiction. This year’s five nominees offer a snapshot of some

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15 Novels That Stretched My Knowledge

I keep finding book lists on the internet with titles like “Books That Will Change Your Life” and “Books That Will Influence Your Thinking.” So here’s my list (in no special order): 15 Novels That Stretched My Knowledge and Stayed With Me Long After I’d Read Them. What novels would make your list? Let us

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Monday Miscellany

Two Items on J. D. Salinger Two recent news items about J. D. Salinger, reclusive author of Catcher in the Rye: New biography of JD Salinger to be published this September An attempt to piece together the life of the notoriously reclusive Catcher in the Rye author JD Salinger, researched over the course of eight

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Monday Miscellany

In ‘Alphabet’ Mysteries, ‘S’ Is Really For Santa Barbara It’s good to catch up with one of my favorite mystery writers, Sue Grafton, creator of private investigator Kinsey Millhone (rhymes with brimstone): The next book will be “W” Is for Wasted. Grafton promises “z” will be for “zero” — and after she finishes that one,

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