There is an article going around from the New York Times about Dan-el Padilla Peralta, a Classics professor at Princeton (specifically history of Rome).
In my opinion this NY Times article about Padilla is very well written and displays a well-rounded observation of Padilla’s history in and views on Classics as a field. I don’t know much about Padilla personally, but to this classicist, the things he says rang true — that Classics should cease being dominantly white, Christian, and solely focused on Greece and Rome. That the systemic racism and prejudice must end.
There have been many who have…
Today was not what I wanted.
I watch all these YouTube videos of talented people living wonderful lives,
with daily routines of writing, working, doing things that seem so lovely and wholesome.
Oh the serotonin that fills my brain to see it.
How come I can’t feel the same way about my own days?
I really shouldn’t worry about it that much now, I am in quarantine, pandemicized as it were.
And it is Winter — a frigid, Winnipeg Winter. No going out into the world for a while.
I want a life that makes me feel all that serotonin…
FEBRUARY 2, 2021 ~ A. SIEGELSTER
The Daughters of Ys by M.T. Anderson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Daughters of Ys is based on a Breton tale, and includes (at least what I think is) Celtic folklore. In this story, two young women are the princesses of the mythical kingdom of Ys, the daughters of a king and a sorceress. Rozenn, the older daughter, loves solitude and a more wild life. Dahut, the younger, gains the abilities of her mother and craves the power and rule of the kingdom. …
FEBRUARY 1, 2021 ~ A. SIEGELSTER
No Ivy League by Hazel Newlevant
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
No Ivy League by Hazel Newlevant is based on the author’s true story of when they spent a summer as a teenager working at the “No Ivy League”. The “No Ivy League” hired teens to strip invasive ivy from the forests of Oregon. During their time there, Hazel, who had been home-schooled, met other teens who not only had the experience of high school that they did not, but who also came from different, diverse backgrounds that they were not used to…
JANUARY 16, 2021 ~ A. SIEGELSTER
Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I was recommended Silver in the Wood on Likewise when I asked for short books to read. This is quite a short book — I read it in less than two days via Scribd, and on my phone no less.
Silver in the Wood is a retelling of the Green Man folklore, featuring also fairy lore and all other forest and tree aspects of European folklore. Mr. Tobias Finch, the Green Man figure himself, meets the young and inquisitive Henry Silver…
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
As a Jewish woman, who also recently found out that she’s 20% British, I thought that Jewish Folk Tales in Britain and Ireland was an amazing find. I love folklore, and I know so little about where the stories of my culture come from. Unfortunately, I ended up being a bit disappointed with Liz Berg’s work.
Jewish Folk Tales in Britain and Ireland is divided by different areas of England, Scotland, and Ireland. Before each story, Berg gives a brief overview of the history of the Jewish peoples that lived in the specific area…
The house was empty.
The house was empty.
She had made sure of that.
The rest of the family was gone for the night.
She had put the animals in their kennels for the night.
The house was empty. So why was she afraid?
The night was like any other she had spent in this house.
Only now she sensed something else walked with her, something with no name.
But the house was empty.
Empty, except for that feeling.
She passed through parlor and kitchen and bedroom after bedroom.
She was being watched. She was being watched by nothing.
It…
JANUARY 3, 2021 ~ A. SIEGELSTER
I had planned to read 40 books in 2020, though I ended up only reading 28. I still think that’s pretty good though, considering the pandemic, stress, and finishing my degree as well as working part-time. I’ve reviewed all of the books I’ve read this year on this blog, so please feel free to read them if you haven’t already. For this post, here’s a list of the books I’ve read this year from my most to least favorite:
5-star reads:
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
JANUARY 2, 2021 ~ A. SIEGELSTER
By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was my second Agatha Christie mystery ever, and I am so happy I read it. By The Pricking Of My Thumbs is book 4 of the Tommy and Tuppence mysteries, in which Tuppence goes on a journey to a small village to solve the mystery of a missing woman from her husband’s aunt’s retirement home. This mystery, however, unravels more than she was bargaining for.
This is one of her later books, and I very much like the…
Abigail Siegel
MA in Classics: Latin poetry as well as myth and folklore. Writes mostly poetry and book reviews. Part-time Latin tutor: https://latinbyabby.wordpress.com/
