Remember the feeling you got when dutiful Dobby, with his big floppy ears, skinny-chicken legs, and wide-eyed adoration (towards Harry, at least), was freed? Our clever Harry Potter tricked Lucius Malfoy into giving Dobby a dirty sock, thus freeing the brave elf. Nearly every Potter fan’s heart melted. GIF courtesy of https://bit.ly/1OKhaMQ Now, in an ironic twist, a decrepit-looking Dobby statue in the Warner Bros. Studio Leavesden has been encased in glass, likely for the safety of the piece of art. Loyal fans have been placing socks by the ill-looking Dobby during tours of the studio in an attempt to free the elf (or …
We love dystopian novels. They are so often set in a world that seems far-off, even ludicrous, but yet, something about speculative fiction makes us uneasy. Could these places exist? There may never be a colony on the moon, but catastrophic events that are out of humans’ control do not seem outlandish–nor do repressive governments and suspicious neighbors. These authors know how to play on our fear of a dubious future. This list features new and upcoming dystopian novels that follow brave humans facing more-than-challenging situations. Maybe we can learn a thing or two from them. Not On Fire, But …
Sherlock Holmes is not the only one in the family with smarts and a keen sense for solving mysteries. The top-scoring Basketball player-turned-writer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, just published a story based on the less known, but still popular Holmes crime-solver, Mycroft Holmes. In the novel, entitled Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock’s older brother has just graduated from Cambridge University and already has a job working for the British government. Mycroft learns of gruesome events in Trinidad from a close Trinidadian friend; people are disappearing and someone is draining children’s blood. Along with his Trinidad-born fiancée, Georgiana, Mycroft sets off for the Caribbean island to investigate. The …
The transition from the bright and hot summer days to the crisp, shorter days of fall incites us to read books about just that. Whether you’re snuggling up by the fire with a spooky Halloween read or headed back to school, these book suggestions will help you ease into your best fall gear. Farewell Summer by Ray Bradbury The title alone will make you nostalgic for those warm and sunny days. In this semi-autobiographical trilogy, Bradbury uses the concept of time and seasonal weather to emphasize the story-line; the conflict between old and young, as well as the sexual awakening of …
If you love to eat as much as you love to read, you’ll enjoy these mouthwatering books. Writing about something as common as eating can be a difficult thing to master. This list is made up of inventive fiction and non-fiction in which the authors use their love of food to create captivating stories. While books centered on food can describe pictureque meals, these authors have more than just a love of eating in mind. Many awaken the reader with social commentary and cultural insight, such as Mia Alvar’s In the Country: Stories. From Peter Mayle’s autobiographical A Year in Provence, with vivid descriptions of southern …
