Giants in the Land

You would have laughed to see it—that mound of walruses piled on the Russian coast. Laughter was my first inclination. I wondered when a male walrus would begin an awkward mating dance or heave his bulk at a pesky seagull. I was waiting for the comic soundtrack, the thumping of a tuba, when I began to understand. This was a story of suffering.

Desolation EP: Now Available in the Rabbit Room Store

Drew Miller’s new project, set to release October 4th, is now available exclusively in the Rabbit Room Store for the next week. And it includes an unreleased bonus track, supplemental videos about the project, and beautiful liner notes in PDF form.

The King of Autumn

In the spirit of fall, here’s a “lost verse” from Douglas McKelvey’s liturgy of “Praise to the King of Creation.”

The Habit Podcast, Episode 18: Sarah MacKenzie

The Habit Podcast is a series of conversations with writers about writing, hosted by Jonathan Rogers. In today’s episode, Jonathan Rogers interviews Sarah MacKenzie, champion of the read-aloud revival.

Transposing Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene

One of the most brilliant aspects of The Faerie Queene also makes this work inaccessible to most modern readers. For approximately 35,000 lines, Spenser writes in verse (tight poetic form).

The Slugs & Bugs Show: A Review

One of the great words of the New Testament, to which Jesus himself gave the greatest importance when he used it in instituting the Eucharist, is anamnesis, remembrance. Christ’s institution placed at the center of our lives a gift and a discipline. The discipline is recalling a Person from the back of our minds into the focus our mind’s eye. The gift is that the Person we recall is Christ himself.

An Autumnal Playlist

Autumn is an unthoughtful friend. Though it’s scheduled to arrive this Monday, the relentless sun ensures we’re still baking in late October, rendering us as overdone as a neglected apple pie on Thanksgiving. Autumn finally embraces us with cool weather just as Halloween passes by and the retail stores intensify our cravings for a snowy Christmas (which we know will actually be 70 degrees and sunny). I feel cheated, and yet, Autumn is my favorite season of all.

Fixed in Post: Once Upon A Time in Hollywood

Love him or hate him, Quentin Tarantino has always been a provocative director. In his newest film he takes a look back at the Hollywood of the late ’60s with its hippies and westerns and Bruce Lee and even a little bit of The Great Escape. There’s a lot to discuss, and only one thing is certain: Tarantino provokes Pete Peterson and John Barber to profoundly different reactions.

The Habit Podcast, Episode 17: Randall Goodgame

The Habit Podcast is a series of conversations with writers about writing, hosted by Jonathan Rogers. In today’s episode, Jonathan Rogers interviews Randall Goodgame, the mastermind behind the Slugs & Bugs franchise.

The Dragon Lord Saga: Marco’s Book Review

Click through to see what Marco himself has to say about The Dragon Lord Saga: Martin & Marco.

Weathering the Books

It is a good thing Agatha Christie was so prolific; summer is for detective stories. Every year, at just about the same time, the air gets hot, the trees turn green, the college town I live in grows quiet, and Arthur Conan Doyle comes through. Dorothy Sayers as well. And, thanks to the productive industriousness of one Agatha Christie, Poirot and Miss Marple for many summers to come.

For me, reading is intensely seasonal.

The Local Show Playlist: September 3rd, 2019

We had a wonderful first Local Show of the season last Tuesday! Thanks to everyone who came out to hear these songwriters. We’ve compiled a setlist from the night, along with corresponding playlists in Spotify and Apple Music.