Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
James Michener is known for his very long (1000+ pages) historical fiction novels that are sweeping epics over generations. The Source (published 1965) is one such book. It follows the story of a specific hill in the Holy Land (Palestine/Israel) from antiquity to “modern” (1960s) times while archeologists are performing a dig to learn more
The Nonesuch by Georgette Heyer (published in 1962) features a “nearly perfect” gentleman as the main romantic catch. That title, “Nonesuch,” refers to someone who is athletically successful (also called a Corinthian), good at a variety of things, comports himself admiringly, and is generally the best one, the guy everyone looks up to. The female
The titular character in the Regency novel Frederica by Georgette Heyer (published 1965) is not looking to get married. Ever since her father died, Frederica Merriville has been the guardian of her family, and even beforehand she was the principal person to run the household, since her mother has been gone for years. Now she
Emily’s Runaway Imagination by Beverly Cleary (published 1961) is a funny semi-autobiographical historical novel about a girl in the 1920s living in rural Oregon, written by the esteemed and well-beloved Beverly Cleary. I hadn’t know Cleary had written any historical fiction books; I’d only been familiar with her Ramona and Henry Huggins books, some of
Greg’s Microscope by Millicent Selsam (illustrated by Arnold Lobel and published 1963) is an early reader that explores the variety of small things that may be seen through a microscope. It is easily accessible, even to an early reader, because of the friendly, story-like tone to the book. It has a dialogue-based story of Greg
Beverly Cleary’s Henry Huggins series nicely captures the creative Henry through his upper elementary years, especially focusing on his innovation, his creativity as a kid, and the antics of his adopted stray dog, Ribsy. Although the series is dated, having been written beginning in the 1950s, Henry’s adventures show universal frustrations and difficulties that any
As with many of the Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out series books, Franklyn M. Branley’s Down Comes the Rain, illustrated by James Graham Hale (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Stage 2, Harper Collins, 1963/1997), interests the child reader by giving examples of simple things for children to do and try throughout. For example, it suggests activities such as dipping one’s fingers in water,
Winner of the Newbery Medal in 1962, The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare (originally published in 1961) is an amazing story about a boy in Galilee during the time of Jesus. Daniel bar Jamin is an angry teenager, looking for revenge on the Roman soldiers who occupy his land. As a politically charged novel, then,
Although I grew up with D’Aulaires’ Greek Myths, I have never been familiar with traditional Norse mythology. I have a Scandinavian heritage, so this seems a bit sad to me. When I saw that A.S. Byatt’s new addition to the Canongate Myths series was about the end of the world according to Norse mythology, I
When I read One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (published 1967) half a decade ago, I didn’t understand it, but I loved every bit of it. As I struggled for months through the saga (part of which I read in the original Spanish, part in translation by Gregory Rabassa), I found myself
I’m somewhat at a loss of what to say about Gogol’s Wife and Other Stories by Tommaso Landolfi. In some respects, Landolfi’s stories reminded of Borges’ Fictions: they have elements the bizarre. I didn’t enjoy reading Borges (thoughts here), but I did sense a genius and power behind the writing. Landolfi’s writing is likewise laudable,
In flowing, beautiful language, The Silmarillion tells the origin and early tales of J.R.R. Tolkein’s middle-earth. Written as “Elven” songs, The Silmarillion is dense at times. Yet as the tale of the creation of Arda and the children of Ilúvatar (both Elves and men) unfolded, I was in awe of not just Tolkein’s incredible control
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