-
Words by J. Patrick Armstrong It’s quite rare for a book to actually frighten me, to show me a familiar world and rip it apart with such skill, dexterity and reach that I am left with the awful conclusion that the apocalyptic horrors foretold in its pages will, almost certainly, come to pass. But that’s…
-
Gabriel’s Moon by Willliam Boyd and James Ellroy’s The Enchanters take place at almost the same point in his history, as America and Russia race for space and the world lurches to the brink of nuclear war. Yet to read them back-to-back, you might think they were from different planets with different languages. And in…
-
Words by J. Patrick Armstrong This week sees the inauguration of Donald Trump for his second term. A whole host of former presidents, stars and tech billionaires descend upon Washington to take part in what many around the world will more likely view as the repulsive return of a convicted felon who incited an ugly…
-
Words by J. Patrick Armstrong As it is the season for monsters, mummies, zombies, witches, werewolves and a whole host of other manifestations of horror, I thought it only right to make this month’s transmission on the dark prince of the night and offer a little homage to that most ubiquitous and enduring of creatures,…
-
Words by J. Patrick Armstrong Re-reading Huckleberry Finn as an adult in the 2020s is a mixed experience. There is still that childlike pleasure in Huck’s escape from the churchy schoolhouse nitpicking of Widow Douglas and Miss Watson, intense relief at Huck’s outsmarting of his repulsive, drunken, abusive father, and even envious admiration for his…
-
Words: Becky Driscoll When Huxley picked up his pen in 1931, he was writing against the backdrop of temporary technological optimism: Britain had won the war, a golden age of radio broadcasting was underway, and automobiles, telephones and electric appliances had become the norm to ease day-to-day domestic tasks. Gone were the medieval days of…
-
Cormac McCarthy and the ‘Reader Sublime’ It’s just over a year since the world of American letters lost one of its all-time greats. June 13th, 2024 was one year on from the death of Cormac McCarthy, whose work appeals to the serious reader because it habitually delivers them to that most uncomfortable of nexus where…
-
Subscribe
Subscribed
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
Point Quote Comment 