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You should look at Joseph Campbell's work on mythological themes, particularly his "Hero With a Thousand Faces." These books you mention repeat many of the structural patterns of classical mythology and folklore. Basically, the hero's journey is one from innocence through a series of trials and...

I had a dream last night that I was cooking dinner for Gordon Ramsey and I opened the cabinet and there was a big wet-looking rat in the peanut butter jar. I opened the back door and the rat slithered across the floor like a slug and out the door. Gordon Ramsey was yelling "what the **** are...

I heard him on the radio a couple of weeks ago. His story was certainly interesting. He grew up in the shadow of Kilamanjaro, I think. But then I got the feeling that the whole story was a religious money-raising scheme, so I turned it off. Maybe I'm too cynical. I just had my doubts when the...

It would help to know what time period. Everything is in a time period, isn't it? Land Before Time (prehistoric) Ben Hur (ancient Rome) The Little Foxes (Victorian) Pick a time period . . .

Georges Simenon, brilliant author of the Maigret series, is Belgian. His books are both clever and simple, a neat trick to pull off.

Keri Hume is a great NZ writer. I love her book The Bone People. It won the Booker about 20 years ago. Also, among the Canadians, Robertson Davies is really good, particularly The Deptford Trilogy. I read Alice Munro's short stories last year, which are good but not up the the brilliant...

I disagree completely. I object to intentionally leaving any message in a library book without the library's knowledge. It's an abuse of a public service. It doesn't matter whether anyone is making money off it. What if someone was sticking porno pictures in kid's books in the library? What if...

It's not ethical to use the free public library to place commercial promotion in. Please don't even consider that. It's an abuse of a public service.

I don't know, P. Didn't mean to shock anyone. I was in a bad mood. Throwing my shoes at the wall, so to speak. Darren brings some more information in here, always a good thing. D, I didn't mean to be harsh. I thought I was being nice in that instance. The only point I meant to make is that...

Tried it. Read it. Thought about it. And. . . I think the blogs aren’t going to bring any richness to this forum. For one thing, anyone who’s really writing anything worth reading will not blog here, because you have to own and control your own material. It’s rule number one of writing. It’s...

I particularly like your point about the story being told by Scout, in retrospect, as an adult, and so that would make for a trustworthy point of view. That's absolutely true. It makes me wonder what their relationship grew into, "Boo in His Later Years." Theoretically, of course. Though the...

Hey there, Litany. You know, between her name and her sideline in pirates, it crossed my mind that this poster was one of your diguises.

It might be Historical Blunders by Geoffrey Regan. He also wrote Royal Blunders (or something like that). Maybe he has a new book out (Chicken Soup for Blunderers, The Blunderers Book for Dummies?).

I just find it strange and depressing that your posts are always, in one way or another, about why you don't think this forum is any good. Such things are what you make them. Life is not about what OTHER people are doing, whether it's some clip from the media or some other person's blog.

I'm suggesting that on a book forum you talk about books.

It's subscription only, so what's the point?

http://www.bookandreader.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4086&highlight=Salinger There's a huge thread on Catcher in the Rye. You may or may not want to read iit; I only point it out because I posted to it quite a bit and I don't feel like reiterating whatever.

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the most challenged and banned books in the schools curricula in the US, mostly cited for profanity and damage to race relations. The NAACP protested its use in Arizona schools. I guess the assumption is that the teachers are incapable of teaching the book...

I want to read this. Just ordered it. Anyone read it yet? I'm thinking it will be very good.

Moto wants to know what meta is. Moto, why can't you have a public conversation, fer chrissakes? It's a forum. Meta means that you are always talking about the thing instead of being the thing or participating in the thing. It's like the way people here go on and on about how long it takes...