![]() ![]() English-speaking readers may not recognize all the historical characters, but no prior knowledge is needed to enjoy Tyll’s adventures. ![]() Indeed, Tyll’s unique position lets him interact with a variety of folk, enhancing the scope of this picaresque tale. Kehlmann pokes fun at Germany’s language and traditions as Tyll entertains and insults people across the social spectrum, from royalty to laborers. ![]() He survives a rough childhood (and emerges changed after being forced to stay alone in the forest overnight), sees his miller father betrayed by witch-hunting Jesuits, trains as a performer, becomes court jester to the deposed Winter King and Queen of Bohemia, and more. Daniel Kehlmann masterfully weaves the fates of many historical figures into this enchanting work of magical realism and adventure. Some of the book’s eight nonchronological, interlinked episodes are told, in part, from Tyll’s perspective, while in others he appears as a minor character. Injecting gleeful dark humor into a setting that manages to feel both fantastically dystopian and historically grounded, the irresistible story highlights the chaotic devastation of the era, during which millions across Europe died, and shows how a prankster like Tyll hardly has a monopoly on foolish behavior. Kehlmann has an unusual combination of talents and ambitionshe is a playful realist, a rationalist drawn to magical games and tricky performances, a modern who likes to look backward. ![]() A bestseller in Germany, Kehlmann’s tale convincingly sweeps Tyll Ulenspiegel, the classic itinerant trickster from German folklore, ahead from medieval times to the seventeenth century and the Thirty Years’ War. ![]()
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![]() ![]() ![]() From the visionary art of the prehistoric caves at Chauvet and Lascaux to the latest findings from The Salk Institute in La Jolla, McGraw deftly weaves history and science in an effort to understand the meaning, significance, and future of this all-important concept, crucial to so many religious traditions. ![]() In the introduction, McGraw writes: Why bring up the debate about the human soul once again? If thousands of years of careful thinkers could not resolve the arguments, why should we expect anything more? We can now expect better answers-or at least better arguments-because science has provided us with new tools and new information about this all-important matter. ![]() "Brain & Belief: An Exploration of the Human Soul possesses a compelling structure the first part of the book chronologically traces the history of the soul from its basis in prehistoric thought to its canonical placement at the center of Western theological traditions, the second part of the book-in jarring contrast-outlines the developments in neuroscience and psychopharmacology that put traditional ideas about the soul to the test, and the final section of the book illustrates the ramifications of this intersection between the old and the new, the consequences of that perennial clash between science and religion. ![]() ![]() Joseph Shuster was born in Toronto to a Jewish family. In 2005, the Canadian Comic Book Creator Awards Association instituted the Joe Shuster Awards, named to honor the Canada-born artist. ![]() He and Siegel were inducted into both the comic book industry's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1993. ![]() His comic book career after Superman was relatively unsuccessful, and by the mid-1970s, Shuster had left the field completely due to partial blindness. Shuster was involved in a number of legal battles over ownership of the Superman character. Joseph Shuster ( / ˈ ʃ uː s t ər/ SHOO-stər J– July 30, 1992), professionally known simply as Joe Shuster, was a Canadian-American comic book artist best known for co-creating the DC Comics character Superman, with Jerry Siegel, in Action Comics #1 ( cover-dated June 1938). Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Book Creator Hall of Fame, 2005 ![]() ![]() ![]() In typical fashion though, The Path of Flames opens with a battle scene. And sure enough, I had a blast with this book. There’s a certain kind of comfort and pleasure I take from reading stories like these, mainly because I know that at the end of the day, I’ll enjoy myself no matter what happens. From its description, I had a feeling this would be a novel right up my alley-epic fantasy with a bit of an old-school feel, featuring a standard secondary world wracked with war and dark sorcery while courageous heroes go head-to-head with dastardly villains. If you’ve been following along with the progress of this year’s SPFBO competition, then I don’t have to tell you, 2016’s crop of finalists all look incredible, and of the top ten books remaining in this second phase, one of the ones I’ve looked forward to reading a lot is Phil Tucker’s The Path of Flames. Series: Book 1 of Chronicles of the Black Gate ![]() For full details and the list of books, see our SPFBO 2016 page. Phase 2 of The Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off 2016 is officially underway! For the six-month period from Novemto the end of April 2017, we will be reviewing the ten finalists chosen by the blogger judges from the first phase of the competition. ![]() #SPFBO Review: The Path of Flames by Phil Tucker ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() What do you consider the most overrated virtue? Frugality. What is your current state of mind? Spirited. What is your greatest extravagance? Getting a massage. Which living person do you most admire? Ellen Degeneres What is the trait you most deplore in others? Disingenuity. my first thought, after answering the last question: Maybe I shouldn’t have told everyone that I’m weird.) What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Second-guessing myself. Is that weird? That’s probably a little weird.) What is your idea of perfect happiness? Double-chocolate French macarons. It the hot seat today: MARCI LYN CURTIS, author of the contemporary YA, THE ONE THING (Disney Hyperion, 2015), and the upcoming THE LEADING EDGE OF NOW (KCP, 9/4/18). ![]() The Proust Questionnaire, popularized by the French essayist and novelist Marcel Proust, is said to reveal a person’s true nature through a series of probing (i.e., nosy) questions. ![]() ![]() ![]() Dangers they have never faced before are lurking in the twilight shadows, and former allies are acting strangely hostile. Before there is peace, blood will spill blood.New territory brings new troubles for the fierce cats of the warrior Clans, who are still uncovering the secrets of their new home around the lake. The penultimate title in this thrilling feline fantasy adventure. A sinister path is unfolding, and the time is coming for certain warriors to make the choices that will determine their destiny. As the Clan slowly recovers from a devastating badger attack, Leafpool can't help but wonder.do her prophetic dreams mean there are even worse dangers still in store for the warrior cats? At the same time, shadows of the past continue to haunt the forest as some old friends struggle to find their place, others appear to be lost forever, and an old enemy finds a new way to resurface in a quest for dark revenge. Soon after the cats reached their new home by the lake, Thunder Clan's medicine cat Leafpool received an ominous warning from Star Clan: Before there is peace, blood will spill blood, and the lake will run red. The final title in this thrilling feline fantasy adventure. ![]() ![]() Won first literary prize at age ten in Mobile Press Register contest, for short story "Old Mr. ![]() Appeared in motion picture Murder by Death, Columbia, 1976. 1943-44 also moonlighted as a filmscript reader and freelance writer of anecdotes for a digest magazine. ![]() Worked for New Yorker magazine as a newspaper clipper and cartoon cataloger, c. John's Academy, both in New York, NY, and public schools in Greenwich, CT. Education: Attended Trinity School and St. Born September 30, 1924, in New Orleans, LA name legally changed died of liver disease complicated by phlebitis and multiple drug intoxication, August 25, 1984, in Los Angeles, CA son of Archulus Persons (a nonpracticing lawyer) and Lillie Mae (Faulk) Persons Capote adopted by Joseph G. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Full of heroism and chicanery, it is also a fascinating brief history of astronomy, navigation, and clockmaking, and opens a new window on our world. ![]() Longitude is the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest and of Harrison's forty-year obsession with building his perfect timekeeper, known today as the chronometer. One man, John Harrison, in complete opposition to the scientific community, dared to imagine a mechanical solution-a clock that would keep precise time at sea, something no clock had ever been able to do on land. Thousands of lives and the increasing fortunes of nations hung on a resolution. Lacking the ability to measure their longitude, sailors throughout the great ages of exploration had been literally lost at sea as soon as they lost sight of land. The dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest and of one man's forty-year obsession to find a solution to the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day-"the longitude problem."Īnyone alive in the eighteenth century would have known that "the longitude problem" was the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day-and had been for centuries. ![]() ![]() ![]() The characters are the same, and the story teller is always Jodi Baxter, 3rd grade teacher, wife, mother. "Each book in this series is so different from its predecessor. Through prayer and friendship, the Yada Yadas are getting real. Plus, Bandana Woman, who was safely locked up in prison, has returned. She’s continually unnerved by guilt stemming from the accident and dreads the day when she comes face-to-face with Hakim’s mother. Out of all the Yada Yadas, God has Leslie “Stu” Stuart move into the Baxter’s upstairs flat, which requires a lot of patience-and tongue-biting-on Jodi’s part. Jodi’s life is suddenly full of changes, and they can be described as anything but boring. Instead she finds that when you’re open to His plans, life is unpredictable-in the best and hardest ways. ![]() She even asks God for a little “dull and boring” in the new year. ![]() The sisters of the Yada Yada Prayer Group are learning how to be real-with each other and with God.Īfter a particularly exhausting year with the Yada Yada Prayer Group, all Jodi Baxter wants is a break. ![]() ![]() Here are the stories that are included, with links to the original Batman News review in case you want to read some more in-depth analysis: ![]() There are quite a few issues collected here, and with two exceptions, each is a standalone. 6: Graveyard Shift, the volume that at last collects the “filler” from this historic run. ![]() Many fans wish smaller stories were the norm, but how did the smallest stories on DC’s biggest book fare? Today, we’ll take a look at Batman, Vol. What they all have in common is a narrowed scope, even if they were connected to the larger arcs. Some were by Snyder and Capullo, while others made room for different voices. Yet, there are a number of smaller, simpler tales that found their way into the run. These five stories (largely) carried the Dark Knight through five years and brought much critical acclaim. The New 52 run on Batman is best known for its big story arcs: Court of Owls, Death of the Family, Zero Year, Endgame, and Superheavy. ![]() |