Literature and Poetry

How do we know Shakespeare's plays? For many of them, the answer is one book: the 1623 First Folio. Without it, 18 plays, including Macbeth and The Tempest, could have been lost. In 2016, First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare brings the First Folio to 50 states, Washington, and Puerto Rico. Just like with his birthday, Shakespeare's exact date of death is a mystery. It is commonly said that he died on April 23, 1616, but no record of his death exists, only a record of his funeral on April 25, 1616. more »

Although the project is ongoing, the group's central finding so far is that suspense is characterized by the presence of words that convey how things appear to be rather than how they really are, such as "seemed," "perceived," or "observed." In other words, even if you already know what is going to happen next, the text's description of how things "seem" still triggers a feeling of uncertainty and suspense. more »

Joan L. Cannon reviews: Hay describes loves lost, pasts savaged by shock and horror, hopes defeated in the wake of happenings not yet consigned to experience. She describes vividly a landscape that enriches each of the main characters, and that beguiles the reader as brilliantly as any travel brochure. Bajaj is a master at creating suspense; it's hard to put the story down. The journey with Max will leave memories and likely questions for a very long time. more »

Editor's Note: Now that the curtain is being drawn on the Downton Abbey saga we have to quickly turn to the resumption of Grantchester, Season Two, and the handsome priest, Sidney Chambers. We found ourselves disarmed by actor James Norton as Sidney and admit we were previously drawn to Robson Green, playing Inspector Geordie Keating. Green was seen in the series, Wire in the Blood, so the combination of the two actors makes Grantchester even more appealing. There is a dark note to the first episode, but a second season must, by all accounts, startle on some level. more »