Category Archives: USA

when the light finally came

Posted on November 6, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

Ada Limón’s poem “We Are Surprised”— Now, we take the moon into the middle of our brains so we look like roadside stray cats with bright flashlight-white eyes in our faces, but no real ideas of when or where to … Continue reading →

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National Parks

Posted on November 5, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

I am a huge fan of national parks. In my travels I have been fortunate to visit quite a few. While some of my favorites are here in North America, I have spent time in some spectacular parks as far … Continue reading →

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Taking Flight

Posted on November 3, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

One of the immense pleasures that the city of Philadelphia offers is its myriad of murals. Along with a prolific cadre of street artists, Philly is also home to the amazing Philadelphia Mural Arts Program which sponsors fantastic paintings all … Continue reading →

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Sandwich of Horror

Posted on October 31, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

NB: If the H.P. Lovecraft video fails to launch please click here .  

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It’s Decorative Gourd Season

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

Here in North America folks tend to go a bit overboard with seasonal decorations. An important mainstay is the carved pumpkin. In the video below, professional pumpkin carver, James Hall, runs through 13 different levels of pumpkin carving, from the … Continue reading →

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It’s Edgar Allan Poe Season

Posted on October 28, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

There are many excellent illustrated volumes of Edgar Allan Poe stories, but this  1944 edition with illustrations by German-American artist Fritz Eichenberg is special. Eichenberg was a German artist who emigrated to America in the 1930s; his speciality was wood … Continue reading →

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nostalgie de la bibliothèque

Posted on October 26, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

While checking out book blogs I stumbled on a reference to “Spooks and Spirits and Shadowy Shapes” , featuring wonderfully atmospheric, period illustrations by Robert L. Doremus. Certainly not the most interesting Halloween reading, but personally significant as I remember … Continue reading →

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to keep my own heart free of hatred and despair

Posted on October 25, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

It began to seem that one would have to hold in the mind forever two ideas which seemed to be in opposition. The first idea was acceptance, the acceptance, totally without rancor, of life as it is, and men as … Continue reading →

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Tudor Books

Posted on October 18, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

Recently, my favorite museum in North America the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City opened an impressive new exhibition, The Tudors: Art and Majesty in Renaissance England. Spanning King Henry VII’s seizure of the throne in 1485 to … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Books, Europe, History, Libraries, Museums, Tourism, USA | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The Right to Read

Posted on October 17, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

In response to the ongoing rightwing hysteria of school students free access to books Federal legislation was introduced last week that would expand access to school libraries and codify student First Amendment Rights. The Right to Read Act (S. 5064 and H.R. … Continue reading →

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