A deserted town, outlaws after gold … just another day in the wild, wild, West with Louis L’Amour.

Last updated on: July 18, 2012 at 1:14 pm By Julie Davis

At Forgotten Classics, where we offer a sample of perfect vacation reading … Louis L’Amour! Read more

Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin Series

Last updated on: July 17, 2012 at 5:14 pm By Jeff Miller

I finally finished going through the 21 books of the Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian. Rather a bittersweet moment in that it is nice to finally finish it and sad that this is it. The last book simply called 21 contained only three chapters as the author died writing the follow up to “Blue at the Mizzen.” This series follows Jack Aubrey an naval officer during the Napoleonic wars and his friend Stephen Maturin. While I do enjoy... Read more

Free or Cheap Classics “Classes” on the Internet

Last updated on: July 19, 2012 at 11:48 am By Julie Davis

I must say that I have never been so interested in so many truly classic books as right now. My interest has been piqued by various bloggers and podcasters whose discussions are so interesting that I swim in the wake of their enthusiasm. These are all underway but it is easy to track back and start at the beginning: The Flannery O’Connor Summer Reading Club – blog For a simple reader like me, some help is necessary to understand O’Connor’s short... Read more

Danny Gospel

Last updated on: July 16, 2012 at 5:26 pm By Jeff Miller

David Athey the author of “Danny Gospel” let me know that his book is free today on Amazon for Kindle/Kindle App users. This is a quite excellent first novel. My original review. His latest novel is Christopher, which I reviewed here. Read more

Class Alert: Science Fiction, Part 1 – From Modern Beginnings through the Golden Age

Last updated on: July 16, 2012 at 12:41 pm By Julie Davis

I have been a fan of Amy H. Sturgis ever since hearing her talk about science fiction history at StarShipSofa podcast. I’m gonna say that, based on that experience alone, you’ll get a wonderful class if you are interested in the subject. But let’s let Ms. Sturgis tell you all about it. I’m thrilled to say that this fall, online and worldwide, I’ll be offering the first of my two-part history of science fiction course, Science Fiction, Part 1: From... Read more

An Old Classic Still Has Power to Surprise: Heidi by Joanna Spyri

Last updated on: July 10, 2012 at 1:44 pm By Julie Davis

Heidi by Johanna Spyri My rating: 5 of 5 stars I came across this when perusing Semicolon’s list of 55 Free Kindle Books Worth Reading. I don’t know why Heidi appealed to me at that moment but I remember loving the book when I was a child and reading it many times. I began reading it this weekend just to get a taste of the classic I loved, but had no intention of reading all the way through. Imagine my... Read more

Whispers of the Heart

Last updated on: July 11, 2012 at 5:16 pm By Jeff Miller

As a bibliphile I miss the almost total lack of fellow book lovers in the movies. Sure books are sometimes part of the plot, but usually they are a means to an end to obtain some specific knowledge to move the plot. The actual love of reading just doesn’t come through in the movies I have seen. Well that was until I recently watched “Whispers of the Heart” which was directed by the late Yoshifumi Kondô. I was already a... Read more

A Good Vacation: Six(ish) Books

Last updated on: July 11, 2012 at 6:56 am By Sarah Reinhard

Hey y’all. Julie graciously gave me permission (and a login!) to post my bookish thoughts here. I’m usually over at Snoring Scholar (where I talk books, faith, and family, among other miscellany). The first week in July, I unplugged myself from the various blogs, social networks, and electronic doodads that fill my days and went with my family to a beach. I took a pile of books, plus my loaded-up Kindle, and I was ready to roll. I had no... Read more

Riders of the Purple Sage

Last updated on: July 9, 2012 at 8:16 pm By willduquette

Another of the Oxford’s World Classics I picked up on sale is Zane Grey’s Riders of the Purple Sage, a title I’ve been familiar with just about forever. Note well: it’s not the book I’ve been familiar with, just the title. For some reason, people like to riff on it. There’s a country rock band, “New Riders of the Purple Sage”; Philip Jose Farmer wrote at least two tales with variants of the title, a Thieves’ World story called “Spiders of the... Read more

Converts and Kingdoms

Last updated on: July 9, 2012 at 4:59 pm By Jeff Miller

Converts and Kingdoms: How the Church Converted the Pagan West and How We Can Do It Again is a new book by Diane Moczar being published by Catholic Answers. This book illustrates some of the major movements of conversion throughout history. Starting with the time just before Constantine and dealing with the growth of Christianity prominently in Europe and later the New World. I was somewhat familiar with some of this history from the books of the late Warren H.... Read more