On the Footsteps of Rashomon: A Nearly Normal Family by M.T. Edvardsson

Crime or legal thrillers, which I rarely read, are written to be exciting and to keep you the reader guessing who the  perpetrator is or, if she’s identified early in the story, whether she is in fact guilty. Crime thriller, I think, is one genre in which the plot is primary. Characterization may not be well-rounded and it focuses on what motivates a crime. How … Continue reading On the Footsteps of Rashomon: A Nearly Normal Family by M.T. Edvardsson

Nature as Main Character in Fiction: 1. Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead. Most likely a crime thriller or a murder mystery, right? That’s how some reviews have perceived this novel, including one put out as “the Amazon review” of this Amazon Best Book of August 2019. Maybe advertising the book this way helps sell more copies. But I think doing so does the novel a disservice. It is, … Continue reading Nature as Main Character in Fiction: 1. Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead

A Sensation of the Victorian Age: Wilkie Collins’ A Woman in White

Ever heard of sensation novels? No? Me, neither until I met A Woman in White by Wilkie Collins, published in 1859. For the most part I listened, rather than read the book, courtesy of Librivox.org. I’ve sampled many audiobooks at this site and I take my hats off to volunteers who’ve dedicated precious time and energy to bring classic literature to people who prefer to … Continue reading A Sensation of the Victorian Age: Wilkie Collins’ A Woman in White