Personal

A small black open container, holding a white votive candle, with 4 orange-and-black bent legs on each side. Title: Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!

For your Halloween enjoyment, I offer this fascinating article: Witches around the world “The belief in witches is an almost universal feature of human societies. What does it reveal about our deepest fears?” Gregory Forthis, retired professor of anthropology at the University of Alberta and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, has spent […]

Happy Halloween! Read More »

Bluish-green rectangle with leaves in shades of brown and gold. Text: Nonfiction November Week 1: 10/28/24 to 11/1/24. Your Year in Nonfiction hosted by Based on a True Story

Nonfiction November Week 1: My Year in Nonfiction

Because I have a personal penchant for alliteration, I’ve been reading nonfiction in November for the past few years. Only a couple of months ago did I discover that Nonfiction November is An Actual Thing, an established book-blogging meme: Announcing Nonfiction November I apologize to the hosts for not acknowledging them in past years, and

Nonfiction November Week 1: My Year in Nonfiction Read More »

Discussion

How I Review Novels

Related Post: I’ve been blogging about books since the late 1990s. During that time I’ve thought a lot about why I blog but not so much about how—or rather, how I approach reviewing a book. I’ve put off writing this post for quite a while as I looked back over past reviews I’ve written, especially

How I Review Novels Read More »

Background: 3 stacked, closed books; open notebook with pen on top. Text: September Is Rereading Month

September Is Rereading Month

For the past few years I’ve set aside September as a month for rereading works that I’ve continued to think about since I first read them. I don’t remember exactly when I started doing this or even why, but knowing that it will eventually come up gives me comfort all year. And once I started

September Is Rereading Month Read More »

Happy National Book Lovers Day!

National Book Lovers Day!

It’s National Book Lovers Day, a day to celebrate! Visit a library or a bookstore—or attack your TBR pile. What I’m doing today: catching up on my digital reading journal with all the books I read on vacation. What about you? How are you observing National Book Lovers Day?  © 2024 by Mary Daniels Brown

National Book Lovers Day! Read More »

Discussion

The Best Dystopian Novels

The Best Dystopian Novels Although I’m a bit more hopeful since the arrival of Kamala Harris at the top, I’m still quite anxious about the upcoming election here in the U.S. Having lived through the turbulent yet lively 1960s working toward change, I fear an impending regression in not only politics, but also in morality

The Best Dystopian Novels Read More »

Scroll to Top