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While the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings are by far the most well known of JRR Tolkien 's stories, that's not actually where he started building his world. Way back during WWI, as a young man, Tolkien started working on his own grand myth, including the creation of the universe , the rebellion of the most powerful of the gods , the birth of the children of Ilúvatar and much tragedy that followed. What's called the First Age began with the awakening of the first Elves, saw

This year, in the days leading up to Christmas, I read Dickens' A Christmas Carol to my kids, particularly my oldest but all who would sit for it. I got started on it later than intended, who isn't overly busy this time of year, but we were able to line it up and read the last chapter (or 'stave') called 'The End of it' on Christmas Day morning. This is when Ebenezer Scrooge joyously reveals his changed attitude and expresses it all around town. It was glorious and I want to

We all want to share the things we love with our children as they grow, hoping they'll take on those interests for themselves. We also instinctually know reading to our kids is overwhelmingly positive, to bond with them, to stimulate their brains, and at night to help them sleep. Reading has always been something I've enjoyed, in particular when it comes to old, classic stories. There's usually good reason something's lasted decades, or centuries, and I want to be part of tha

READ THIS BEFORE YOU WATCH THE TRAILERS! Next year a sci-fi movie called Project Hail Mary starring Ryan Gosling will hit theaters. It's an adaptation of another book by Andy Weir, author of The Martian. That book came out in 2011, the film in 2015. Project Hail Mary the book released in 2021 and will be a movie in early 2026, about the same timeline. I never did read The Martian but have to say I enjoyed it on screen, my desire to dislike (Team America voice) Matt Damon

After getting a tip I'm now reading The Roman Revolution , by Ronald Syme, a book about Rome's transition from Republic to Empire and features such figures as Pompey the Great , Julius Caesar , Mark Antony , Cicero and Augustus . This is also the subject matter from HBO's Rome , tremendously good TV which, in all honesty, is helping me read this book. This is not a beginners book on Rome, so I do need the help. It's very dense and blunt and I would not have been able to ge

At this stage of life I didn't think I was a big fan of fairy tales. That's something you grow out of, right? Well this spring I was...

As a kid, in middle school probably, I read the first two parts of C.S. Lewis ' Space Trilogy. Then, for some reason, I could not get...

Comparisons between America and ancient Rome are inevitable, they're the most culturally and militarily dominant empires the world has...

I can't remember the last time I read something as quickly as I read Adventures of Huckleberry Finn . For one it's an engaging, amusing,...

I started reading the Iliad (Fitzgerald translation) last year, well before learning about Nolan and the Odyssey , part of a prolonged...

This year I started reading some longer, more advanced books to our eldest (and the two others if they sit still and be quiet), who's...

After we finished The Hobbit I was determined to regularly keep reading better, longer books to our firstborn. The next book seemed...

I recently finished reading The Hobbit to my five year old. It was easily the longest, most complex book we've read to him in totality (I...

For my birthday my wife gave me The Fall of Gondolin, a new-ish (2018) book credited to J.R.R. Tolkien but put together by his son...

When talking about ancient Greece it's easy to make generalizations. Most of our hard evidence from that era comes from Athens, home to...

In case you couldn't tell, I've really been into ancient Greece lately. After hearing about it a couple times in other books, I decided...

I think most Americans know the broader definition of western civilization goes back through medieval Europe to Rome and, ultimately, to...

We spent our Thanksgiving down in Arizona. Much of my family is down there, including my parents, and we split our time between the 'East...

What do you think about when you hear King Arthur? There's the sword in the stone where Arthur's worth and lineage are proven. His grand...

I intended to write this before the film came out. Alas, whatever, it wasn't meant to be. I've been a fan of Dune since first reading the...