Blog
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Meditations with Marcus Aurelius
Such as are thy habitual thoughts, such also will be the character of thy mind; for the soul is dyed by the thoughts. One of my methods of minimizing bias in my readings and reviews is to avoid introductions. For Meditations (tr. by George Long), I made an exception since the biographical note was at… Continue reading
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Twice-Told Tales
It is puzzling to me why Twice-Told Tales is passed over for The Scarlet Letter as required/recommended reading in U.S. schools. I cannot yet compare the contents of the two, having avoided Scarlet Letter this far, but in the context of his other writings such as Blithedale or Seven Gables, Twice-Told Tales strikes me as… Continue reading
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Nightmarish Utopia
I believe Sir Thomas More meant well when he penned Utopia (1516), but it is quite possibly the worst book I have ever read. Given the standard of living for the majority of human beings in the early 16th century, More’s dream of a perfect nation must have sounded as idyllic as it gets. Yet… Continue reading
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South: Antarctica, Endurance, and WWI
Sir Ernest Shackleton‘s South was my spontaneous “heavy reading” for this spring/summer. At times, my reaction was “What did I myself get into?” It is a long first-person narrative, stylistically tedious, and inherently repetitive–but absolutely worth the commitment. {Note: Be sure to look through photographer Frank Hurley’s book South with Endurance while you read South. … Continue reading
About Me
Hi, I’m Marian—I talk about classics, history, and other books on this blog, as well as on YouTube.
Currently Reading
Recent Posts
- Emo Classics – Bronte, Woolf, and Kierkegaard
- What I’m Reading – It’s Almost March Edition
- What I’m Reading – Morning Coffee Edition
- Oddly Specific Things I Love in Books (and a Few Movies)
- The Tenant of Wildfell Hall – A Long Overdue Review
Classics Considered 