(Introducing guest blogger, Sydney Stevens a history writer who also publishes a daily blog about life in a small community.  I hope my readers might enjoy a change of pace and meet a wonderful blogger. www.sydneyofoysterville.com) Yesterday my husband and I went with good friends on

WEIRD is how someone might describe Sherlock Holmes.  The term is psychological parlance to describe people who think logically when problem-solving.  (“The Science of How We Vote” Scientific American Mind, May/June 2016, pg. 8.)  15% of the world’s cultures think WEIRDly, mo

Not long ago, I sat down to dinner at the retirement center with a woman I’d never met.  We got along well but before the cheesecake arrived, she was in tears, telling me her version of  the “perfume wars.”  She loved perfume, she confessed, and as she spends much of her life

Kazuo Ishiguro’s, The Buried Giant (Random House, 2015) is a tale signifying something, but the critics aren’t sure what.   Jon Ronson of the New York Times (Click) calls it a fantasy or a story akin to allegory.  Tim Holland of The Guardian attempts to cover all the basis, lin

When my dad wanted to break the tedium of life, he’d get in his truck and drive off to the nearest sporting goods store.    Two or three hours later he’d be back home with a new fishing rod or reel that put a smile on his face.  I suspect many men have worn a similar smile, ha

There must have been a time when I cared about my wardrobe, but that was too long ago to remember.  In college, I wore levis and sweaters.  Later, as I travelled the globe, my wardrobe remained the same.  Being elected to public office required some refinements.  I bought pantyhos

One of my great bafflements about books is why some capture the public’s imagination and others languish in Amazon’s cellars.  Haruki Murakami’s latest novel, The Colorless Tsukuru and His Years of Pilgrimage sold over a million copies the first week it was in print.  I’m a

A friend called me on a Sunday, responding to a birthday message I’d sent. As friends do, we caught up on each other’s lives and then made suggestions about books to read and movies to see. I recommend the films, August: Osage County and Blue Jasmine, both of which are films with

WINNIE THE POOH AND THE UGLY AMERICAN Toys and fantasies about toys are the mainstream of children’s literature. “Winnie the Pooh” who loves honey and “Paddington Bear” who loves marmalade sandwiches are the huggable creatures of our youth. “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” or

Writing a memoir is different from writing fiction.  That may be obvious at first blush.  Memoir deals with facts.  Fiction has no obligation to the truth. Both tell a story, however.  A memoir is about a real person.  Fiction presents an avatar to stand for some aspect of the hu