Claire Keegan’s novella Small Things Like These is centered on Bill Furlong, a coal merchant preparing for the holiday season in a secluded Irish town during the winter of 1985. With a wife and five daughters to support, Bill has long focused on remaining credible with his fellow townsfolk by maintaining a reliable business.… Continue reading
Tag: History (Page 1 of 2)
This was a monumental year of change for me, but browsing through write-ups on literary topics has remained a pleasant cornerstone of my daily routine. From soul-bearing interviews with charismatic authors to recommendations for locale-specific books that transport curious readers overseas, here are my favorite book and author articles from the last two months of 2021.… Continue reading
Occasionally, I find myself craving a book about a real-life adventure. I admire the courageous travelers and explorers whose biographies document their travels in rarely-before-seen locales, but there’s also a scholarly side to my personality that needs satisfying. In other words, I treasure adventure stories even more when they’re approached from a historical or socio-cultural angle.… Continue reading
Motivated to expand my historical knowledge of the sectarian tension and violence that plagued Northern Ireland in the late 20th century, I excitedly grabbed this book and flew it up to my Boston apartment (where a sizable population of Irish people resides, I might add).… Continue reading
Sometimes, I want to go beyond reading a book and absorb a few opinions and anecdotes from the authors who write the books I’m reading. Other times, I want to listen and learn from my fellow book-lovers: the writers, bloggers, and Instagrammers who make the literary community so vibrant.… Continue reading