Category Archives: Books

Auden wrote a mountain

Posted on January 11, 2016 by hessd

Every year I climb a mountain of a poem, getting, each year, a step or two closer to the top. If it has a top. It is W. H. Auden’s, For the Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio. We read it … Continue reading →

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When I lie to myself, I don’t believe me

Posted on November 19, 2015 by hessd

The title I have chosen is the good scenario. There are scenarios that are not as good and the next several essays will be about those. What are those other, worse, scenarios? The first and most basic has to do … Continue reading →

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Two Professors in Narnia

Posted on November 14, 2015 by hessd

There are two. In the seven volumes of the Chronicles of Narnia, there are two professors.  They are both good guys. [1]  They appear in the first two books about Narnia, C. S. Lewis’s “Middle Earth,” and then not again … Continue reading →

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Plainsong

Posted on October 30, 2015 by hessd

Tucked into Kent Haruf’s novel, Plainsong, is a small and powerful plot. Haruf’s writing is lovely throughout this small story, but a lot of what he writes could be described as “what it is like to live in Holt County, … Continue reading →

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Mr Bennet’s Folly

Posted on October 18, 2015 by hessd

It is really hard to dislike Mr. _____ Bennet. [1] In the early scenes, he stands unmoved amid the hurricane force moods of his wife. The wife is so obnoxious that I felt an immediate admiration for Mr. Bennet just … Continue reading →

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Screwtape and Salience Games

Posted on October 11, 2015 by hessd

From the time I first read The Screwtape Letters (TSL), I have been intrigued by the way Screwtape plays with salience. And that was before I spent four very concentrated years at the University of Oregon studying salience. In this … Continue reading →

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A Parent is a Teacher, not a Concierge

Posted on August 9, 2015 by hessd

I am going to look at that bold title through the lives of Walter Possum and Frances the Badger. Or, rather, through their parents, whom I admire almost more than I can say. These wonderful parents come to us from … Continue reading →

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What to Do if the World Burns Up

Posted on July 28, 2015 by hessd

I didn’t start out to think about the topic of suicide. [1] Actually, I started with the destruction of the entire surface of the earth, courtesy of Neal Stephenson’s recent SevenEves. [2] The death of all the humans on the … Continue reading →

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Reading Strategically

Posted on July 14, 2015 by hessd

I am a strategic reader.  It is the scandal of my book group.  Last month, my grandson, who is headed off to college, drew back from me when I described what I meant by that term and said something on … Continue reading →

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My Inner Wormtongue

Posted on July 3, 2015 by hessd

Gríma, son of Gálmód was Théoden’s chief staff. Those of us who are familiar with bureaucratic organizations are likely to read through that line and fill in the missing word, “of” and never notice that it wasn’t there. Others may … Continue reading →

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