![]() ![]() In 1972, she created her last pseudonym Philippa Carr. In 1960, she created the pseudonyms: Anna Percival and the popular Victoria Holt. ![]() In the 1950's she used the pseudonyms: Elbur Ford, Kathleen Kellow and Ellalice Tate. ![]() In 1941, she began signing her novels with her maiden name: Eleanor Burford, later she created her first and most prolific pseudonym: Jean Plaidy. She used eight pennames during her career and many of her readers under one penname never suspected her other identities. In her early twenties, she married a leather merchant, George Percival Hibbert, who shared her love of books and reading.Įleanor Burford was one of the preeminent English authors of historical fiction for most of the twentieth century. She was an avid reader from the age of four onwards. Her father, Joseph Burford, was something of an odd-job man, with no steady profession, but he quickly passed on his great love of books to his young daughter. Eleanor Alice Burford was born on Septemin Kensington, London. ![]()
0 Comments
![]() ![]() He makes sense of the world by reframing it into simplistic good vs evil, in the way he has been told to. He doesn’t think there’s anything outside of the “golden destiny” … other than death. Part of it not being a choice is that Simon doesn’t believe there’s anything to choose. Simon doesn’t choose: he’s programmed to follow orders and rules, and he finds purpose by succeeding in his tasks. Many get training and mentors, but there’s usually a calling involved, a struggle where heroism is an active choice they make. ![]() But when you get down to it, why is he a hero? Because he was told to be one. ![]() Saving the day (saving people) by itself meets the definition of a hero, and he’s genuinely good. His powers would make him comparable to superheroes – he’s practically perceived as such by his peers – yet he goes against it with the ease with which he kills. Simon goes along with traditional hero narratives by slaying monsters, especially when it’s linked to saving a damsel. ![]() ![]() ![]() Hence, even a complicated act that demands concentration at first, like finding a piece of chocolate in a maze or backing out of the driveway, eventually becomes an effortless habit. ![]() Its evolutionary role is clear and crucial: it allows the brain to save energy and perform common tasks efficiently. This process of turning a sequence of actions into an automatic routine is known as “chunking,” and it forms the basis of all habit formation. When the researchers repeated the experiment, however, they noticed something interesting.Īs the mice gradually learned where the chocolate was and memorized how to get there – go straight, then turn left – their brain activity decreased. They could smell the chocolate and they began searching for it. When the mice were first put in the maze, their brain activity spiked. Using special equipment, the researchers could monitor the brain activity of the mice as they sniffed their way to the chocolate. The mice had to find their way to a piece of chocolate that’d been placed at the end of a T-shaped maze. In the 1990s, a group of researchers at MIT were studying mice to learn more about how habits are formed in the brain. ![]() ![]() The Washington Post described the book as, "There’s plenty of funny on these pages. In October 2020, Thomas and Helena Andrews-Dyer published the book, Reclaiming Her Time: The Power of Maxine Waters, named a Best Political Book of the Year by The Atlantic Lin-Manuel Miranda described the book as, "Pop culture–obsessed, Sedaris-level laugh-out-loud funny.one of my favorite writers." Here For It was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award, named one of the best ten best book of the year by Teen Vogue, and one of the best books of the year by O: The Oprah Magazine. The book was a National Bestseller and a Today Show Read with Jenna Book Club Pick. In February 2020, Thomas published the essay collection, Here for It: Or, How to Save Your Soul in America. He has written for the television shows Dickinson ( Apple TV+) and Better Things ( FX). He is the long-running host of The Moth in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. Career įor four years, Thomas wrote "Eric Reads the News," a popular daily humor column covering pop culture and politics for Elle. He is best known as the author of Here For It, a National Bestseller. ![]() Eric Thomas is an author of Here For It, a playwright, and television writer. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() 50,000 first printing $50,000 ad/promo Literary Guild alternate. ![]() But there is more, and Penelope is the one who hears the true storyor is it? Goddard ( Past Caring ) has crafted a marvelously intricate plot, deftly and subtly unveiling, through different narrative voices, the mystery at the core of this intense, shocking tale. Six months after her husbands sudden death, Leonora Galloway sets off for a holiday in Paris with her daughter Penelope. Young Leonora eventually escapes to a happy marriage and finally discovers the truth about her parentsespecially about her mother, who had been described to her as a whorethrough the device of a stranger's tale: not an ancient mariner's, but an old soldier's. By way of explanation, Leonora relates the story of her childhood as an orphan in the mansion of Meonsgate sp ok in Hampshire, under the tyranny of her greedy, power-hungry step-grandmother. Her father, Captain John Hallows is listed there, but, Leonora points out, he died more than a year before her birth. In the prologue, the younger Leonora, now a grandmother, takes her daughter Penelope to France to visit the memorial to those killed on the Somme in 1916. ![]() Set in England during and after WW I, this is the story of three generations: the two Leonoras, mother and child (and their husbands, both handsome, adoring, young army officers), and of Penelope, who at length unravels the twisted skeins of her mother's and grandmother's past to discover herself. ![]() ![]() But the Scholars being people who loved knowledge, and Marshals being people who rule with an iron fist, and don't forget the resistance fighters, known as the. Also, a small gripe, I felt like the names of the factions in An Ember in the Ashes were a little uninspired, although that's not the biggest deal. While I get why the bad situation and social hierarchy trope is a thing and is appealing to the primary audience-young adults-it feels a little overdone in the wake of Harry Potter (Dursleys/Hogwarts houses), Percy Jackson (single parent struggle/Camp Half Blood), and Hunger Games (District 12 squalor/the districts). Things start off in a standard way for your typical YA dystopian-esque novel, where adolescents are depicted in bad conditions, to say the least, and you learn about how the world is divided into factions/groups/districts. ![]() ![]() I came in expecting a story just as thought provoking, poignant, and eloquent as All My Rage, and while An Ember in the Ashes didn't quite reach the peaks of Sabaa Tahir's latest novel, its action-packed storyline and colorful cast of characters had me turning the metaphorical pages of my audiobook in the back half of the book. After reading All My Rage, I knew I had to give Sabaa Tahir's other books a read. ![]() ![]() ![]() Unfortunately, just as curiosity killed the cat, Agatha’s inept snooping is soon a motivation for murder. The police call the death a freak accident, but Agatha convinces James that playing amateur detective might be fun. ![]() Unfortunately, his sacrifice is all for naught when the vet is soon found dead. Since the new vet in town is young and good looking, Agatha’s perfectly healthy tabby endures a nasty physical exam in the name of romance. But her recipe for social advancement sours when the judge not only snubs her entry–but falls over dead!Īgatha Raisin hasn’t quite adjusted to the slow pace of village life, or to the failure of her overtures to her handsome neighbor, James Lacey. Despite the fact that Agatha has never baked a thing in her life, she is sure the pie she has secretly bought from an upper-crust London quicherie will make her the toast of the town. Bored, lonely, and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest. Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and samples a taste of early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. The Quiche of Death and The Vicious Vet, the first two books in the series, are now together for the first time in one volume. ![]() Beaton has delighted readers and fans alike with her Agatha Raisin mysteries. ![]() ![]() I know, intellectually, that this series was originally run in a seinen (adult men’s) magazine, and that explains why there is such explicit nudity. The entire story, from beginning to end, works as a period romance. Robin: For me, at least, full frontal nudity of this kind is not a barrier to a series that appeals to teens nor does it negate the appropriateness for teens. Yep, they like it so much they bought it.Įva: So, my first question is, given the fact that there is full frontal (female) nudity in this book, something that could rightfully raise eyebrows in many communities, why do you think this is a teen series? Since Brigid Alverson has already written reviews for volumes one through seven (the main storyline), we’ll link to hers by way of providing a synopsis.ĬMX, September 2006-December 2009, $9.99 eachīoth Eva and Robin own their own copies of the series. ![]() ![]() ![]() I think he's the head of the shifter Mafia but I could be wrong. ![]() He made a big deal about his work but they never really talked about it. Except I still don't know what Byron does. It's the 5th in the series but I wasn't too lost not having read any of the others. The writing and the plot made me roll my eyes so much I thought they'd fall out of my head but I decided to just go with it and it turned out to be an OK read. But Skylar finds that he enjoys pain and having two cocks inside him so it's all good. He's also afraid of scaring him off with the two dicks thing. In fact, Byron is very interested but is afraid of hurting the delicate looking Skylar with his massive size and BDSM kink. Skylar is a seahorse shifter and he's had the hots for Byron the shark shifter for a while but Byron's not interested. Like the fact that sharks have two dicks. I learn all kinds of things when I read MM. ![]() ![]() So Goss doesn’t have much space to elaborate or develop these ideas. The Thorn and the Blossom is a short book, and both character’s stories combined clock in at under 100 pages. Or my personal favorite: whether Evelyn’s visions (which she’s been having since she was a small child) are memories of her past life or hallucinations requiring medication. Theodora Goss touches briefly on several of the directions she could have taken this story – but never really follows through on any of them. ![]() ![]() The implication being that these two characters are reincarnations of the lovers from the old tale, cursed to be apart for 1000 years. Intertwined with their story is a variation of the old Arthurian legend of Gawain & the Green Knight. They have a whirlwind romance, and then separate under tense circumstances. (Warning! Skip this paragraph if you want to avoid spoilers!) Evelyn & Brendan first meet when Evelyn visits Cornwall on holiday. Each cover carries one of the lovers’ initials which corresponds with the text you’re about to read: B for Brendan and E for Evelyn. Theodora Goss has made the most of the format by creating a romantic tale told from the perspectives of two separate characters: Evelyn & Brendan. The book itself, an accordion book, can be opened from either side and contains four illustrations (I believe done on scratchboard) by Scott McKowen. ![]() ![]() It comes with a slipcase decorated in a William Morris style illustration. The Thorn and the Blossom is, first off, a beautiful book. ![]() |