They had me at “Reader, I murdered him…”
I saw two posts mentioning this quirky book, “Jane Steele,” this afternoon while Continue reading “If Jane Eyre Were a Murderer…”
If Jane Eyre Were a Murderer…
Category: Books
A Letter to Daisy Buchanan
Dear Daisy, Hi. How are you? How has your day been so far? No, you don’t know me, and I would venture to say that I don’t know you quite as well as I’d like to think I do. I’ve read about your luxurious house and your arrogant, obnoxious husband and even your daughter. Despite […]
Bilbo Baggins in Rapunzel’s Tower (And Other Rapunzel Character Swaps)
“Every world in fiction is a mentality – a way of understanding, a means of making judgements, a catalogue of right and wrong. To build a world, we must build our characters.” —Neil MacDonald
I read this on author Neil MacDonald’s blog the other day and was struck by it. Between the two of us, we wondered what would happen if you put a literary character in another book’s setting. How would the setting itself be changed?
What if, for example, someone other than Rapunzel was trapped in that tower?
Here’s how I think the story and setting would change for five characters:
Continue reading “Bilbo Baggins in Rapunzel’s Tower (And Other Rapunzel Character Swaps)”
How To Actually Enjoy Classical Music (For Book Lovers): The Story I Imagined
In the first part of this post, I revealed a way to imagine your favorite literary characters and stories in classical music. (Read about the idea here.)
As promised, here’s the story I imagined when I listened to the brief, one-minute long piece at the end of that post. (I put it in this post, too.)
Based on The Picture of Dorian Gray
Continue reading “How To Actually Enjoy Classical Music (For Book Lovers): The Story I Imagined”
How to Actually Enjoy Classical Music (For Book Lovers)
Classical music can be pretty boring. Why would you choose to listen to something that long and that abstract? Lots of people try to figure out how to “understand” the music, but understanding is definitely not always the same as enjoying.
Of all people, I was perfectly primed to love classical music. I grew up with a professional classical musician as a father, was taken to numerous concerts, took piano lessons constantly ever since I was seven years old, and participated in chorus and band in high school. I even became a classical music major in college and had extensive formal training. And while I didn’t hate it or anything, I certainly didn’t love it. Like so many people, I just didn’t “get” it.
So forget understanding.
How can you actually ENJOY classical music?
Believe it or not, it is possible. As a book lover, I found the secret…
Books take you on adventures that spice Continue reading “How to Actually Enjoy Classical Music (For Book Lovers)”
Voldemort and Beyoncé Robots (Or a Dream I Had)
A little while ago, I had a pretty phenomenal (but stressful) dream.
In this dream, I had to kill Voldemort. But I had time travelled to the future with Beyoncé as my traveling companion.
In this future, we were in an outdoor marketplace trying to hide form Voldemort. We figured we’d blend into the scenery, so we started dancing among a group of Beyoncé robots. (Beyoncé was doing pretty well keeping up with them, but I was flailing about as I tried to match their steps.)
At one point, Beyoncé started singing as Continue reading “Voldemort and Beyoncé Robots (Or a Dream I Had)”
Top 4 Books That Need to Become Broadway Musicals
By “need to become,” I mean that they should be Hamilton/Wicked/Les Misérables level productions.
1. Pride and Prejudice
Listening to Mr. Darcy sing…sold.
2. The Great Gatsby Continue reading “Top 4 Books That Need to Become Broadway Musicals”
Music In Wonderland: The White Rabbit’s Proof (Final Part 4)
[Alice asks the White Rabbit her final question about the relationship between stories and classical music. If you missed Part 3, you can find it here.]
I just have one more question, Rabbit Dear.
What is it?
I understand that a tapestry can become a table, and a table a tapestry, but why should I bother with them when you are so much smarter than I and so know the tapestry’s benefits as a tablecloth much more than I? (It is true that the White Rabbit was never averse to a bit of flattery, but here I simply said what I thought.)
Why my dear, even if I am a bit better at the table-tablecloth conundrum (he did look a bit smug, though perhaps that was simply a result of using the word “conundrum”), seeing the tablecloth on top of the table is a valuable skill!
Why?
Because tables are notoriously persnickety! One never knows where they’ve been and where they’re going.[1]
(I had always suspected this very thing of tables, and now here Continue reading “Music In Wonderland: The White Rabbit’s Proof (Final Part 4)”
Music in Wonderland: The White Rabbit’s Proof (Part 3)
[Alice and the White Rabbit discuss the value of literary connections to classical music. You can catch Part 2 here.]
I was a bit sleepy at this point from the tea, but as the Rabbit kept talking and as I liked to listen, I pinched my arm a few times and managed to stay awake.
Now my dear, do you think the Cow destroys the moon when he jumps over it in the music?[1]
I suppose he might…
But when you place a tablecloth on a table, like this one here, does there cease to be a table?
Why of course not!
Does the table cease to be necessary?
I should say not! Without the table, the tablecloth would not be a tablecloth anymore, but just a cloth! (In reality, the tablecloth was just a cloth—rather a blanket that Continue reading “Music in Wonderland: The White Rabbit’s Proof (Part 3)”
Music in Wonderland: The White Rabbit’s Proof (Part 2)
[Below, the White Rabbit begins asking Alice questions as they discuss classical music. If you missed Part 1, you can find it here.]
ONE
To start, my dear, how do you read a book?
Why, from left to right of course.
And do you start at the middle and read from Chapter 3 straight on to Chapter 57 and back to Chapter 34?
Why, certainly not! (I huffed.)
Well why ever not?
One simply can’t jump around in “The Cow Jumped Over the Moon.” Otherwise, the Dish would have run away with the moon while the Cow laughed at the Diddle Dog.
Quite right, my dear—well said. Well then, how do you listen to music?
…The same way I read a book, I suppose.
Very good—very good. Now, if you read a book in order and listen to music in order, what does that say about the book? Continue reading “Music in Wonderland: The White Rabbit’s Proof (Part 2)”
If Mermaids Wore Suspenders 