Happy Hump Day! I hope that you are all having a productive week - for many, the first full week back after the holidays. The second half of January is always a difficult one, as the reality of the post-Yuletide winter sets in. On the bright side, the days are once again getting longer and … Continue reading The Weekly Reader: 08/01/14
This post is, in actuality, being composed on Monday, in a bout of pre-travel organisation. As you read this, I will be in New York, taking a well earned break from the PhD and passing Thanksgiving with my family. A pretty good deal, I'm sure you'll agree. But never fear, my bibliophilic tendencies will remain … Continue reading The Weekly Reader: 27/11/13
Well, lovely followers, this is the last edition of The Weekly Reader that shall be coming to you from the UK. In one week, I will again be gracing the shores of the USA for a holiday visit. A welcome (working) vacation before I return for another intense semester of PhD excitement. Never fear, posts … Continue reading The Weekly Reader: 21/11/13
Well, friends, it's official. The heating has gone on, which means there is no more denying that winter is almost upon us. In two weeks, I will be trading in the UK for the even colder climates of New York and Missouri. Jumpers, mittens, and hats at the ready. In the meantime, you will most … Continue reading The Weekly Reader: 13/11/13
Happy Wednesday, friends! Halfway through the week already and on the downward slope toward the weekend. How exciting! As the first full week of November, it has also become somewhat acceptable to be in Christmas countdown mode. Although my skin still prickles at the sound of Christmas albums playing on a loop and I seem … Continue reading The Weekly Reader: 06/11/13
After working my way through some contemporary novels, I thought it time to return to the list of classics stacked in my To Read pile. For a while now, I have been waiting for a chance (when time and taste coincide) to pick up Flaubert's celebrated masterpiece Madame Bovary. It is a book that I … Continue reading Review: Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
Tomorrow marks the birthday of sorceress of storytelling, JK Rowling. As a member of the lucky Harry Potter generation, Jo's books have been a big part of my life since Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone first graced the UK's bookshelves. As my family will attest, my obsession with the world of Harry Potter remains a dominant … Continue reading Happy (early) Birthday JK Rowling!
It is always a fascinating experience when personal interests collide. Fortunately, my two principal passions - literature and human rights - are constantly intersecting. This said, with the majority of my day typically given over to human rights-based research, I do tend to steer clear of giving my personal reading time over to the subject. … Continue reading Review: Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
It has been a while since I last managed a Literary Excursion post. Exams, dissertation-writing, and a preponderance of shifts at Knebworth House have left me with limited time to venture out into the world. Fortunately, a bit of glorious weather (and the fact that George Bernard Shaw's home is just 10 minutes down the road) … Continue reading Literary Excursion: Shaw’s Corner
For the past week, the literary world has been possessed by the news that J.K. Rowling secretly published a book earlier this year, under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. Choosing to do so in order to escape the inevitable, and often biased, scrutiny that accompanies her publications, The Cuckoo's Calling ends a year of debate regarding … Continue reading Review: The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)
The Book Habit 