First Person: Bruce Springsteen on “Nebraska”
Two passages from Bruce Springsteen talking about his 1982 album Nebraska. You can hear the entire album here: Nebraska began … Continue Reading First Person: Bruce Springsteen on “Nebraska”
Not Quite Nostalgia (new essay)
Probably the most personal thing I’ll publish for a very long time, written a few years ago: To save a … Continue Reading Not Quite Nostalgia (new essay)
The Flaming Head at the Beginning of Ancient Rome
from Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita, Book 1 ch. 39, on the astounding events during the childhood of Servius Tullius: At that … Continue Reading The Flaming Head at the Beginning of Ancient Rome
Mr Cassian’s Beeping Garage (poem from “School of Night”
Originally published in Southword #37 Mr Cassian’s Beeping Garage The phantom limb of some lost electronic sound, it still makes … Continue Reading Mr Cassian’s Beeping Garage (poem from “School of Night”
W. B. Yeats, “A Prayer for My Daughter”
W. B. Yeats, “A Prayer for My Daughter” Once more the storm is howling, and half hid Under this cradle-hood … Continue Reading W. B. Yeats, “A Prayer for My Daughter”
W. B. Yeats, “A Prayer for My Son”
W. B. Yeats, “A Prayer for My Son” Bid a strong ghost stand at the head That my Michael may … Continue Reading W. B. Yeats, “A Prayer for My Son”
Dostoevsky’s Nightmare
Raskolnikov’s horrible dream, from early on in Crime & Punishment: Raskolnikov had a fearful dream. He dreamt he was back … Continue Reading Dostoevsky’s Nightmare
Heaney Comes to Poetry
Here are some of Seamus Heaney’s memories of reading, writing, and poetry, from earliest schooldays to university, all taken from … Continue Reading Heaney Comes to Poetry
Angela Merici & the Education of Women & Girls in the early 1500s
from Thomas Cahill: They were a group of well-born Lombardian ladies, led by Angela Merici, who came together to educate … Continue Reading Angela Merici & the Education of Women & Girls in the early 1500s
“My Mother’s Sister,” by C. Day-Lewis
My Mother’s Sister I see her against the pearl sky of Dublin Before the turn of the century, a young … Continue Reading “My Mother’s Sister,” by C. Day-Lewis
One of the Most Haunting Paintings
At least for me, John Singer Sargent’s “The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit” is one of the more haunting paintings. … Continue Reading One of the Most Haunting Paintings
Bruce Springsteen on “Nebraska,” & When the Demo is the Album
Two passages from Bruce Springsteen talking about his 1982 album Nebraska. You can hear the entire album here: Nebraska began … Continue Reading Bruce Springsteen on “Nebraska,” & When the Demo is the Album
Eleanor Roosevelt Finds Herself
From Geoffrey Ward’s biography of the Roosevelts comes this moving account of Eleanor Roosevelt’s Dickensian childhood, complete with neglectful mother … Continue Reading Eleanor Roosevelt Finds Herself
“One day the Gestapo hanged a child”: God on Trial at Auschwitz
The oldest book about religion on my shelves is Karen Armstrong’s A History of God. The note inside still says … Continue Reading “One day the Gestapo hanged a child”: God on Trial at Auschwitz
When On High, When I Also Saw the Deep (poem)
Originally published at Isacoustic When On High, When I Also Saw the Deep I. When I also saw the deep … Continue Reading When On High, When I Also Saw the Deep (poem)
Missing Child (poem)
Missing Child The sound of them woke me in the morning, feet kicking up careful spirals of leaves and lean, … Continue Reading Missing Child (poem)
