dystopia

Park benches in the time of Covid, by Terry Freedman

PhotoPrompt #33: Park benches in the time of Covid

May 10, 2020 in Creative Writing, Photography, PhotoPrompt

The effect is to heighten the prevailing sense of dystopia.

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Review of Triggered Literature -- useful for English teachers

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At a time when even Noddy books have been declared ‘problematic’ due to their use of archaic terms such as ‘swot’ (since changed to ‘bookworm’), some of us might may feel the temptation to unleash our inner ‘Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells’ in response.

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Review of Handwritten: Remarkable people on the page - Great for readers and writers

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In Handwritten we get to see handwritten manuscripts by monarchs, poets, novelists, scientists and many others.

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Spotting the BS

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“You’ve been speaking to that blasted Freedman, haven’t you?!”

Bookshelf, Reviews, The lighter side

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A book I'm reading

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I’m familiar with a few of the stories in this volume, which features some well-known names such as Raymond Carver, George Saunders, Grace Paley, Ursula Le Guin and Susan Sontag.

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Review: The Notebook *CORRECTED*

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I love the subtitle: A history of thinking on paper (my emphasis). I do think there’s much to be said for writing on paper, and there is no paucity of research showing the benefits of analogue over the digital approach.

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Just William

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A few months ago I wrote about Barnabees Books, in Westleton, Suffolk. It’s a lovely warm place, not only heat-wise but atmospherically, not least because of its delightful owner, Ty.

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Quick looks: Jane Austen; Write, Cut, Rewrite; Handwritten; The Book At War; From Edtech to Pedtech

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Since I read Northanger Abbey when I was in my twenties, I have to say that in the interim it has much improved. Clearly, Jane must have taken a creative writing course or two because it is now much funnier, more cutting and more modern, what with her stepping outside the story to comment on her characters and the novel form itself.

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Review: Oulipo and Modern Thought (Update)

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If your interest in the Oulipo goes beyond simply trying out their techniques, and you wish to learn about the context in which it was conceived and the developments in went through, you will find this book very useful.

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Quick looks: Triggered Literature PLUS an extract from my new version of Macbeth

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A very timely publication. The first section is replete with anecdotes about trigger warnings and similar. Some of these are, in my opinion, ill-informed (such as the charges levelled against Jane Austen) while others are ridiculous (like the rewriting of parts of the Noddy books).

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Libraries and readers in an age of conflict (book review)

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The Book at War is a fascinating study of how books and other reading matter have variously influenced politics, propaganda and history over time.

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