Category: bookish things

The power of saying good night each night to Lena is great. On the first night that Lena was gone, Vaclav said good night to her, put the good night out into the scary, lonely darkness, and meant each word in a very specific way. Good night. Good night. He wanted her to have a… Continue reading Teaser Tuesday

Today’s Teaser Tuesday is just one line. The best first line of a novel that I’ve read in a while. Hello, this is Paul Chowder, and I’m going to try to tell you everything I know. -From The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker, page 1 _____ Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by… Continue reading Teaser Tuesday

For the people who were shovelling away on the housetops were jovial and full of glee; calling out to one another from the parapets, and now and then exchanging a facetious snowball — better-natured missile far than many a wordy jest — laughing heartily if it went right, and not less heartily if it went… Continue reading Teaser Tuesday

When children are lonely, they invent imaginary friends to talk to. Adults such as myself invent imaginary television shows to keep the howling dogs of alienation at bay. Nobody is lonely in a sitcom. The characters show up at bars, diners, or sporting events, and everyone they know is already there. I often think that… Continue reading Teaser Tuesday

Three years have passed since he could accurately describe himself as a visitor to the staffroom, but the surreality of being here, amidst these figures of terror or hilarity from his youth – these imagos, these caricatures, now ambling around him, saying good morning, making tea, acting as if they were normal people – still… Continue reading Teaser Tuesday

She began walking again, south towards The Mound. ‘Live each day as if it’s your last,’ that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that? What if it rained or you felt a bit glandy? It just wasn’t practical. Better by far to simply try and be good and courageous and… Continue reading Teaser Tuesday