Literature

Phineas Taylor ("P.T.") Barnum (1810–1891), of Barnum & Bailey Circus fame, almost certainly never said "there's a sucker born every minute." He did, however, say "I don't believe in duping ...

With schools closed from the pandemic, the young men from Pennsylvania's Gregory the Great Academy, where my grandson Michael is ...

In 1821, the poet John Keats—self-quarantined with a dear friend who served as his nurse—lay dying of tuberculosis, ...

In 1978, best-selling novelist John Gardner published “On Moral Fiction” in which he declared,  “My basic message throughout ...

The coronavirus is concentrating our minds on the fragility of human existence in the face of a deadly ...

We frequently hear the saying “Politics is downstream from culture,” but we should consider as well that culture ...

“Devoted,” Dean Koontz’s latest bestselling novel, has several characters none of us would ever think to be avid ...

Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” (1868) holds a unique place in the literary annals. It has enjoyed popularity ...

Oedipus is one of the greatest heroes of Greek mythology—immortalized in what is generally considered the greatest of ...

These are unprecedented times–but, even so, comparisons are being made to the World War II in terms of ...

“April,” poet T.S. Eliot once wrote, “is the cruelest month.” Certainly his words apply to April 2020. Though ...

For better or worse, actress Joanne Woodward (born Feb. 27, 1930) will always be linked with her late ...

When, long ago, the Roman Empire reached far and wide across Europe, there was one land where the ...

Does anyone now remember what was highly significant in England, circa 1592–94? Or how about 1603–04? No? What ...

A key element of any biography is the author's ability to truly capture the essence of the subject, ...

Why should you read a novel about a nice guy, good family man, Wyoming game warden who keeps ...

“Who listens to you?” Ask yourself that question and then answer it honestly. That question is what Kate ...

Although Rare Disease Day is relatively unknown, it’s worth taking time to think about, and it’s worth having ...

Poets, like the rest of us, have varying attitudes toward death. Some urge resignation, others rage; some point ...

It's 2020. Another year, another decade. As we contemplate the future, we can always look to the past ...

The old house was jammed and noisy, with people standing elbow to elbow in the bar, drinking beer, ...

On New Year’s Eve, four of my five siblings, their spouses, and I gathered to ring in 2020. ...

Born in 1874 in England, as an adult he stood 6 feet, 4 inches tall and weighed close ...

When I was around 9 or 10 years old, my family was visiting my mom’s parents, who operated ...

Socialism in America is on the rise. A recent Gallup poll found that 45 percent of young American ...

2020. Now there’s a number with some heft to it. It offers gravitas, sounding like an Army tank or ...

Sitting on my desk is a 776-page volume of poetry that will in 2021 become a hoary centenarian. ...