This article explores the books HOW TO BE and DEAR EDWARD in light of what it means not just to survive, but truly live—with the help of kindred-spirit relationships and soul-friends.
Good coupled books is a blog series where Tracy Rittmueller pairs an imaginative work of literature with a contemporary “storied-how-to” book with a focus on creating meaning, connection, and healing.
Introducing Good Coupled Books by Tracy Rittmueller Read More »
Yesterday, when I read in the Concord Monitor that one of the last major American poets of his generation, Donald Hall, died at his home at the age of 89, I felt sad that I had neglected to write to him one more time. I never told him how much his example of the good
Unpacking the Boxes: a small tribute to Donald Hall, (1928-2018) Read More »
The Spirituality Center at Saint Benedict’s monastery in St. Joseph, Minnesota, has a labyrinth, which I am preparing to walk soon for personal and professional reasons. I suppose I could just drive over there tomorrow and walk it, but that’s not how I take journeys. I read up on the places I’m going because it
Gailand MacQueen on the spirituality of mazes and labyrinths Read More »
“And I have at last accounted for this last part of my story.” Beowulf’s voice surrounds me, and his image again appears whole before me. Beowulf the warrior reaches out his hand as if to touch me. I extend mine toward him. “Which causes more pain, I wonder. The words unsaid or the words not
Susan Thurston's "Sister of Grendel": a cultural critique of the epic hero Read More »
In essence, the best Genre Fiction contains great writing, with the goal of telling a captivating story to escape from reality. Literary Fiction is comprised of the heart and soul of a writer’s being, and is experienced as an emotional journey through the symphony of words, leading to a stronger grasp of the universe and
Who does and does not read literary fiction? Read More »
“Recovering my fluency in Kansas things, I talked recipes, quilts, and weather with some people, books and poetry with others. I met populists and democrats, poets and farmers, Lutherans and agnostics, and a lot of people who not only loved where they lived but had chosen it.” Tracy Seeley How to be at home “How
Tracy Seeley on choosing to love where we live Read More »
“Language as a tool to manipulate both mind and heart…snapshot of the human condition; of our mortality reflected in nature; the staying of time.” Alice B. Fogel Why poetry matters “Poetry will bring you significant new interactions with the world around you, with ideas and sensations, with yourself and others,” poet Alice B. Fogel wrote
New Hampshire Poet Laureate Alice B. Fogel on How to Explore Poetry's Strange Terrain Read More »
Did you ever try to write a poem attempting to capture a mind-to-mind, heart-to-heart encounter, sitting up half the night conversing with a brilliant person / kindred spirit, your heart bursting with a sensation of music, moonlight and the mystery of existence all mingled together? Don’t bother; it’s impossible to put into words. I’ve recently been savoring essays
Marilynne Robinson on The Givenness of Things and Democracy Read More »
Have you read a book that compelled you food to sample the food described, or tasted a new cuisine to enrich your understanding of a story? I went to Tibet with Sabriye Tenberken…
How to travel the world through books and food: I went to Tibet with Sabriye Tenberken Read More »