Category: Fiction

I Could Be Bounded in a Nutshell

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I recently finished an online course by Futurelearn.com about Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. I wanted to share some reflections on what I learned and what I found most interesting about the course. Although I had read Hamlet a few times prior to this course, I confess that I never really “got” the point. I didn’t see why Hamlet was so upset about his father’s death, and the whole thing just didn’t make sense. But this course helped me understand what it is all about. Hamlet isn’t just about a prince avenging his father’s murder…it is about a young man grappling with the fundamental questions of our existence….

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Book Review: What I Learned in Narnia

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Contrary to what I suspected, I actually had quite a bit of reading time on vacation. My family wanted me to make sure everyone was aware that they were not so cruel as to deprive me of my reading/quiet/alone time even while on vacation. So while everyone else was hanging out at the pool I was wandering around until I found a secluded spot by the lake to read. It was really, really nice. So one of the books I got to read was Douglas Wilson’s What I Learned in Narnia. This book intrigued me for several reasons: 1) I…

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Path of Grass is Released!

So uber-excited….here’s the online store for purchasing Path of Grass! So for my loyal followers who didn’t sign up to read it for free online but preferred to wait and buy a copy, now is your time! To get to the store, you can also click the button at right. Path of Grass will be on Amazon in 5-7 days, but the royalties are higher for me at Createspace (the link posted above) so I’d prefer that you buy through that. I need to live up to my reputation as a greedy capitalist exploiting the people 😉 This is really amazing,…

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Lines of Phreedom

Thanks to a friend, I stumbled upon this website, Lines of Phreedom, last week and it was very encouraging. Encouraging because it means I’m not the only young person who sees the importance of literature in introducing people to liberty. From the About page, Guns will put you in a position of power for a limited time, and rhetoric will get you fame for a while, but what is written will last forever. I’m probably a bit biased because Lines of Phreedom is helping to promote Path of Grass, but even before the webmaster, K.J. Herr, kindly did so, I…

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Path of Grass: Coming Soon to a Bookshelf Near You

I think the first day of summer is June 21st. I wanted to have Path of Grass published in the spring. So if I get it published on June 20th, that still counts as the spring. 🙂 And it might end up being June 20th, I’m not sure. I’m so ready to get this book out there…it is becoming very exciting! Much of the delay in publishing has been the time it takes to get the book from one person or one step to the next. My copy to the typesetter. The typesetter mails it to me. I give it…

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Path of Grass Excerpt

One of the other nuns came to relieve me. I laid down for a few minutes and fell asleep. Sometime in the afternoon I woke up and went to check on the men. Most were sleeping. Franz wasn’t. He beckoned me to come near. “Yes?” I said. “I am lonely.  I haven’t talked to anyone in ages.” So I sat down to listen to him. “Do you know how long this war has lasted? It isn’t over yet, either, I can tell you that. Have you ever hated anyone? In this army, we live on it. My father was murdered…

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Path of Grass Excerpt

But I had a dream. I was sitting on my cot, and a soldier came in. He stomped his way over to me and stood over me, smelling of beer, cigars, blood, and sauerkraut. I cringed and tried to turn away. He grabbed my neck and mumbled something in garbled German. He took out a sharp, shiny knife. “This is for those who lie. Those who are self-centered. Those who pretend they are righteous but are not. Those who take food from the mouths of the innocent. I shall either use this,” he ran his finger across the blade, “or…

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Path of Grass Excerpt

After a futile attempt at sleep, I went back downstairs, where my aunt was sitting and drinking warm water as a poor substitute for tea. “Couldn’t sleep?” “No.” “In the convent, did you hear any news of the world?” “Some of the nuns had acquaintances outside who would give them news, but I didn’t really hear anything. The nunnery really was its own little world.” “Do you know anything about our history? Do you know who Hitler is?” I shook my head. “Here’s a cup of water. It might calm you down. Pretend it is hot cocoa or something nice.”…

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Path of Grass Excerpt

So two days later I was ushered out of the nunnery, out of the big hollow room through which I had first come. Through roundabout ways my aunt’s address was found. I had only to find the street. I stepped out into the street with too-large shoes on, and a very bland baggy dress. I pulled the door closed behind me and then regretted it. The streets were full of people shouting and crowding all over. I didn’t want to walk out into it, but it was too late to go back now. I took a deep breath and pushed…

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Path of Grass Needs Your Help

From the Path of Grass blog: I got an estimate today for typesetting Path of Grass. I would greatly appreciate any help in covering these costs. I am prepared for some of the expense, so my goal is to have $100 donated because I will be taking care of the rest. If more than $100 is donated,  I’ll be using the extra funds to compensate the volunteers who have so kindly offered to help with various aspects of publishing Path of Grass. Please consider making a donation to help publish Path of Grass. Why? Path of Grass is part of a bigger…

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