Posts tagged as:

nostalgia

In Praise of Idleness

February 4, 2012

I have long advocated leaving children alone with no easy distractions (television, computers) so that they can experience boredom, a constructive, fertile boredom that is not to be confused with the trapped boredom one can feel in, for instance, an uninspiring classroom. What a gift when a parent says, “Go find something to do,” instead of [...]

Read the full article →

Joyeux Noël à tous

December 24, 2011

Read the full article →

Spies of the Balkans; Alan Furst, 2011

December 20, 2011

I have a terrible weakness for buying books in airports. A foolish habit, because I’m always carrying too much weight as it is, but the truth is, I don’t spend much time in new bookstores. I live deep in the boonies and I don’t enjoy shopping as a hobby; unless I need something specific, or [...]

Read the full article →

The Weirdstone of Brisingamen; Alan Garner, 1960

December 17, 2011

Christopher Middleton, in The Telegraph, tells you anything you might need to know about The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, and talks with Alan Garner and other writers about the effect it’s had on over 50 years of readers and writers. I will add this, though Middleton mentions it: most claustrophobic scene in all of fiction! Well, [...]

Read the full article →

Letters from Father Christmas; J. R. R. Tolkien (1920-1943; first published 1976)

December 12, 2011

Another holiday favorite in this house are the extraordinary letters and drawings Father Christmas sent the Tolkien children between 1920 and 1943. Take a moment to remember the world created by Tolkien in The Hobbit and the Ring Trilogy, remember the maps, drawings and paintings with which he illustrated them, and then imagine being the [...]

Read the full article →

two views of Paris

April 28, 2011

Read the full article →

Shakespeare & Company, Paris

April 13, 2011

They have a fabulous website, too.

Read the full article →

artist’s studio

April 12, 2011

Visit her here to commission a family portrait, buy a painting, browse and enjoy the beauty and tranquillity of the work.

Read the full article →

Ladurée (the remains of the pastry…)

April 10, 2011

Site très joli ici (kids would like it).

Read the full article →

musique française, but close to home…

March 6, 2011

Love the corny, nostalgic French music. Here, an ode to the good old days in San Francisco. San Francisco—where have you gone! Wait for me, Liza and Luc, Sylvia…

Read the full article →