There is a surprising synergy between writing and board games. All games offer a goal of some sort and even abstract or puzzly sorts of games often have a theme or evoke some sort of feeling of conflict or challenge. Whereas characters in a novel have goals and motivations, so to do players in games. And …
As per usual my nightstand offerings are pretty scarce this week. My vacation offered me surprisingly little reading time, but that’s ok. I had a blast just getting to spend so much time with my family. I did take a bunch of books with me just in case, though. And, by a “bunch of books” …
Welcome back to the Six Degrees festivities, the online adventure that takes you from one unexpected book to the next, while highlighting all of the memorable characters we meet along the way. Last week Jenelle took us to Hyde River and the sinister, keep-the-light-on-at-night tale of The Oath by Frank Peretti. One of the characters she mentioned from …
Six Degrees: From Cliff Benson to Lysias “The Fox” Read More »
You wouldn’t know it from looking at my nightstand this month, but I’ve actually had a fairly productive stint of reading of late. But before I get to that, I have a confession to make. I just recently realized that in the course of these posts I’ve been plagiarizing…myself! Yes, that’s right, without realizing it, …
The Six Degrees band marches on this week with a jump from one well known universe to another, from science fiction to fantasy, from a galaxy far far away to the forests, hills, and plains of Middle Earth. Last week Jenelle Schimdt talked about Han Solo and his exploits in the Han Solo trilogy by A.C. …
This stop in the journey at last brings this series to the present (2015 at the time of this writing), covering what for me is probably the most fruitful and exciting period in my reading career, a time I’ll refer to as the “inkling phase”. Most people who know me for any length of time will …
Phantastes by George MacDonald My rating: 4 of 5 stars Phantastes reads like a self-aware, coherent dream. It follows the wanderings of Anodos (I don’t believe his real name is ever given, but this is what he is sometimes called) through the strange realm of Fairy Land. There is no real plot to this story …
Welcome back for another savory slice of Six Degrees pie. Last week, Jenelle Schmidt served up a taste of Steelheart and his “epic” struggle to dominate the mere mortals inhabiting planet earth. In describing the characters, she mentioned Tia, a scholar and healer who excels at research and who uses those skills in the service of Prof, the leader …
