Poetics is by Aristotle. The classic philosophical work by the Greek master. This small volume contains his thoughts on drama, stories, music, rhythm, and harmony. It is a wonderful, if challenging, read that is well worth the effort. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read.
Ratings: Adult.
The Wicked Boy: The Mystery of a Victorian Child Murderer is by Kate Summerscale. Interesting nonfiction story of Robert Coombes, who murdered his mother when he was 13. Robert confessed, was convicted, declared insane (due to his age), and spent 17 years in Broadmoor asylum. He was released to a Salvation Army farm and from there moved to Australia where he became a hero during WWI. After the war he returned to Australia and took up a quiet simple life. The story raises more questions than it answers.
Ratings: Adult - 7 out of 10 - V (violence) - AC (mature thematic content).
Out of the Silent Planet is by C.S. Lewis. The classic science fiction beginning to the Space Trilogy by Lewis. While Ransom, a philologist at Cambridge, is out on a walking tour, he is kidnapped by two men named Weston and Devine and is taken in a spaceship to Malacandra, Mars, to be a human sacrifice to the aliens that populate the planet. Once on Malacandra, he escapes and meets the inhabitants of the planet, who are not all as he has feared. As he learns the truth about Malacandra and the mysterious Oyarsa, who seems to rule the world, he discovers much about their planet, his own, and about himself. A moving tale, if not the type of science fiction we are used to. The comparison of Ransom to Tolkien is hard to miss. A must read for fans of Lewis. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read.
Ratings: 10th grade - 9 out of 10.
Reading Lolita in Tehran is by Azar Nafisi. A fascinating nonfiction memoir. A Iranian woman returns to Iran to teach at Tehran University immediately before the fall of the Shah. This is her story as she attempts to teach literature, most of which is soon banned or forbidden, during the revolution and in it's aftermath. Eventually she leaves the university and sets up a home literature class for girls; their first book being Lolita. This is the story of one woman's fight to preserve great literature, as well as the story of how great literature can preserve us.
Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10 - AC (mature thematic content).
A Wrinkle in Time is by Madeleine L'Engle. The first book in the classic fantasy Time Quintet series. The imaginative tale of the a sister and brother who, along with their friend, set out to find and save their missing father. The meet three strange women, who take them to other worlds where they must fight a great evil to same their father, themselves, and their world.
Ratings: 6th grade - 8 out of 10.
The Final Girl Support Group is by Grady Hendrix. Another gem, this one realistic fiction, from Grady Hendrix. Final girls are the only surviving victim's of serial killers. These girls have joined together with a leading psychologist to form a support group. Then suddenly someone begins killing the final girls. Can Lynette Tarkington, final girl, find the identity of the killer and save the remaining group members before the killer finds her? Another horrific, yet strangely amusing, story by the author of Horrorstor. Fans of Hendrix will not be disappointed.
Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10 - AC (mature thematic content) - P (profanity) - V (violence).
Diary of an Old Soul: 366 Writings for Devotional Reflection is by George MacDonald. A classic series of prayerful meditations by the giant who influenced both Lewis and Tolkien. Well worth spending a year meditating on by Christians everywhere.
Ratings: 9th grade - 10 out of 10.
