literature
Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.
Book Review: "Young and Damned and Fair" by Gareth Russell (Pt.2)
Gareth Russell does not hold back in painting Henry VIII as quite a jealous and horrific figure, even though there was an attempt at softening that in the way that maybe Hayley Nolan doesn't do in her book about Anne Boleyn. Court politics is one thing and the way in which we learn about Catherine is mainly through the politics of this very court. In comparison to the other women of Tudor England, including Jane Seymour and Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard is inexperienced, having only been in the court for a few months before marrying the King. Anne of Cleeves is upset at the prospect that her husband has been having an affair but can do nothing. This is where it all begins.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Young and Damned and Fair" by Gareth Russell (Pt.1)
*The author uses Catherine with a 'C' to distinguish her from other Katherine-named folk of the time and, as her name is sometimes written with a 'C', it is the author's liberty to use this spelling. I will use the same spelling as the author.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Strange Flowers" by Donal Ryan
Did I know what this book was about before I started reading it? No. Had I heard of the author before? Also no. Did I enjoy it? Absolutely. Donal Ryan's Strange Flowers is one of those moving books that is simply beautiful in its writing. I felt myself being carried away by the lyricism in the language, the poetry in the atmosphere and the storyline which tells us about a cast of characters we cannot ignore. If you're looking for a modern masterpiece of emotional drama and turbulence, then this is probably one that you want to pay attention to. It is absolutely brilliant.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down" by Haemin Sunim
So you guys probably know that terms like 'mindfulness' and 'being present' mean absolutely nothing to me. I don't understand what I'm supposed to be doing when 'being present' and I don't know how to make it any more 'present'. Be that as it may, I think there are some things in this book that are useful, it wouldn't be fair to paint the book simply under my own prejudices against the mindfulness movement (as it is almost universally known that if you're under stress because you're homeless, you cannot simply meditate your way out of homelessness). I will try to be as fair as possible, but there are some things about this book that are still a bit silly. Let's begin...
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Saving Noah" by Lucinda Berry
I was up until the early hours of the morning last night and I haven't had much sleep. I'm cranky and tired, I'm on rations of coffee (my heart rate can't take anymore) and atop of this, I've finished Saving Noah by Lucinda Berry. Whatever little energy I had left, it has now been completely wiped by the fact that by the end of this book I was angry-crying into my hands. It was 6:15am and not a great moment for me. This book is a discovery of several moral arguments that I feel like I should be paying more attention to and yet, everything just feels too loud, too much, too over the top. I want to go back to bed. This book has thoroughly destroyed me.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Penguin Book of Unrespectable Verse" ed. by Geoffrey Grigson
It's been a while since I've read a poetry anthology and this one just happened to be sitting in my drawer. First of all, the writer wants us to understand that this is not a book of satirical poetry (even though it seems like that is exactly what it is at times) and in fact, this book is poetry at its most disrespectful and insulting. I've often found it difficult to reason with this kind of poetry because more than often the poet is trying to be funny and it takes me a while to see what's so funny. I'm also not one for comedy - I don't laugh easily. Be that as it may, there was a lot to enjoy about this anthology and so, I want to take you through my favourite poems of the book, hopefully this will give you a good overview of what's within.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Consolations of Philosophy" by Alain de Botton
Previously in the works of Alain de Botton, we have looked at the following books: As you can see, the reviews are gradually becoming more positive as I start to see where he's coming from. The Consolations of Philosophy is about the practicality of some of the great philosophers in history. As we gain access to their life and times, we take a good look at what they can teach us about various issues that to us, seem individual, but are perhaps more universal than we care to realise. It opens with a carton of Nesquik and a painting by Jacques-Louis David (one of my personal favourite painters, though I do not care for milkshakes, sorry) - and it expands and expands and expands, into something far more human and recognisable.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes
Published in 1947 by Duell, Sloan and Pearce, In a Lonely Place was part of a huge growth in crime fiction that swept America after the Second World War. No longer was crime fiction just about goody-two-shoes detectives looking at murder mysteries; they became much darker, much more psychological and evolved to contain horror tropes as well. These included but were not limited to: madness, darkness, torment and betrayal. The author was already well into a writing career when the book was published but it would prove to be one of the most famous crime novels of the time, even getting its own film adaptation in 1950 starring Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
The Backrooms Are a Transmitted Narrative
The backrooms has once again taken the public by storm with the new A24 film. As someone who’s watched it already I’d highly suggest that you go check it out, Kane Parsons did some incredible work. But another idea itched the back of my mind when I started to see more fan content come out about it.
By caitodoesstuff5 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Disappoint Me" by Nicola Dinan
Who can blame me for getting another Kindle book on the cheap? This is one of those books where I don't really read too much into what the book is going to be about, I just have a go at it and see. This book may not be the most brilliant thing ever written but it is definitely up there as being pretty interesting. I finished the whole book in one sitting and yet, I felt like it was at least, missing something. The main concerns I had about this book is the lack of atmosphere and the great amount of side characters, many of whom did not add to the storyline in any meaningful way. However, the main threads of the story and its primary characters was intersting enough to keep me reading for a long while.
By Annie Kapur5 months ago in Geeks
