Category Archives: History

Lessons from the 20th Century

Posted on January 11, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

Following the horrific events of last week, I am not alone in reflecting back on the cautionary warnings of Yale historian Timothy Snyder. His short, but powerful book On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century published just days after the … Continue reading →

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A Year of Good Reading

Posted on January 10, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

January. A year of good reading ahead is a wonderful book poster from a large WPA collection from the Library of Congress. The series of posters was created by the Federal WPA during the 1930s.  

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The Year in Review

Posted on December 30, 2020 by Brian D. Butler
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The Good Kind of Flood

Posted on December 22, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

If you follow TBTP on a regular basis you are well aware of my tremendous affection for Iceland and all things Icelandic. One of the most surprising things about the island nation is the love of books and reading. In … Continue reading →

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Bookmarking it old school

Posted on December 19, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

How to use a medieval bookmark: 1.) Read. 2.) Spin the volvelle to mark where on the page you stopped reading (I-IV correspond to different sections on the page. 3.) Close book. 4.) Repeat as necessary. By the way, the … Continue reading →

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Old Nieuw Amsterdam

Posted on December 15, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

I come from two old New York City families, but not nearly as old as these 17th century views of the city when it was still the Dutch  West India Company’s colony of Nieuw Amsterdam. Published in 1651, the image … Continue reading →

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Art Mystery or Art Prank

Posted on December 10, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

You don’t have to be a street art sucker like me to be intrigued by the tale of the Cookie Monster “мир, земля, печенье” (“Peace, Land, and Cookies” in Russian) mural that popped up on a commercial building in Peoria, … Continue reading →

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Bookstore Tourism: World’s Oldest Bookshop

Posted on December 5, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

Although I have only visited Lisbon once, I had the serendipitous experience of staying in the Chiado district which is home to some of the city’s best cultural attractions, cafés, and the world’s oldest continuously operated bookstore. Livraria Bertrand, which … Continue reading →

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An Epic Story for a Hard Year

Posted on December 4, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

To be perfectly honest when I first was introduced to the 1,000-year old epic tale Beowulf in high school I was not a fan, but as they say it grew on me over the years. This year, the writer Maria … Continue reading →

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The Freedom to be Free

Posted on November 23, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

Penguin Great Ideas is a series of mainly non-fiction books published by Penguin Books. Titles contained within this series are considered to be world-changing, influential and inspirational. Topics covered include history, philosophy, politics, science and culture. The project has resulted in six series of twenty … Continue reading →

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