“I have never dreamed of being a writer.”
These were the words that opened the compelling, inspiring and highly entertaining lecture delivered on Thursday, Feb. 16, by acclaimed children’s fiction writer Mordicai Gerstein. Gerstein’s visit was the first of a series hosted by Mount Holyoke College’s English department, which is set to feature several other authors of children’s literature in the coming weeks.
Doublethink, perhaps one of the most famous portmanteaus to come out of Orwell’s magnum opus “1984,” has taken on a far too literal meaning in 2017’s America. Regardless of one’s political opinions it is impossible to deny that the recent election and the incoming administration have been defined by fake news, denial of truths, silencing of alternative voices and the destruction of evidence.
After 17 years, the first book in a much-anticipated companion series to the “His Dark Materials” trilogy is set to be released in October 2017. The HDM trilogy has received international acclaim in the years since its release, as has its author, Philip Pullman. Pullman, a decorated author and current president of Britain’s Society of Authors, has long been known for his vocal humanism, political involvement and successful two-decade writing career, has until recently been nearly silent about the prospect of a companion series.
BY DUR-E MAKNOON AHMED '20
My relationship with poetry has always been strange. I grew up reading my mom’s copies of Shakespeare and Robert Browning. As a child, I would watch my parents listen to nationalist poems set to music and debate with each other about meanings and significance of powerful couplets by the eminent Urdu poet Iqbal. In this environment, I subconsciously assumed that I had to love poetry.
BY RILEY GUERRERO '20
More than just a children’s story, the “Harry Potter” series became synonymous with childhood itself for many people around the world. I remember when I unwrapped the seventh book on Christmas nine years ago, my heart racing with anxiety over what I was sure was the final chapter and my last glimpse into the magical wizarding world.
Oh, how wrong I was.
BY SARAH CAVAR '20
“Write a novel? In a month?”
When I first heard about the existence of NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, this was my skeptical first thought. That, and, “What a tedious acronym.” However, for many people across the country, and around the world, NaNoWriMo is a kind of religion. The objective of this month-long event? Complete a 50,000 word-long novel in just thirty days — a goal that, to many people, seems bizarre and impossible.
BY RENN ELKINS '20
On Oct. 23 and 24, an eye-catching headline blared across the pages of several renowned news sources, including the New York Times, the Guardian, and NPR: William Shakespeare’s contemporary Christopher Marlowe will be credited as coauthor of the three-part “Henry VI” cycle in the New Oxford Shakespeare publication of the Bard’s collected works.
BY RENN ELKINS ’20
It’s no secret within the realm of fantasy devotees that the upcoming television adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s novel “American Gods” is the most anticipated page-to-screen adaptation of darkly humored contemporary mythology since, well, “Percy Jackson and the Olympians.” With a production crew consisting of executive producers Michael Green (“Heroes,” “Kings”), Bryan Fuller (“Hannibal,” “Pushing Daisies”) and, of course, Gaiman himself, the anticipation is well-deserved — and, unlike in the case of 2010’s tragic butchering of Rick Riordan’s YA novel, the buildup is nearly guaranteed to culminate in a piece of television that actually does justice to its source material.
BY RILEY GUERRERO '20
The newest “IT” movie, based on the novel by Stephen King, has recently begun filming. The film is set to come out in 2017, and though the initial reaction of any fan is to reject unnecessary changes by corporate media, we must consider, especially with this particular story, what should be changed for the newest iteration in theaters
BY KATE FLAHERTY '19
October is a special time of the year, considered by many to be the heart of the fall season. It’s the month when everyone begins to drink pumpkin-flavored beverages, when the leaves begin to turn into papery pieces of gold and garnet and scary movies become the norm. However, it is impossible to experience the spookiest month of the year without acknowledging the author who snatched the horror genre by the reins and turned it over its head, creating some of the most well known horror stories of all time.
BY SARAH CAVAR '20
As a child, I was fortunate enough to live within a short drive of a quaint independent bookstore, not unlike the Odyssey Bookshop here in South Hadley. Like Odyssey, it was situated relatively near to similar attractions: a café in which one could find fair trade coffee and vegan scones baked with local, seasonal fruit, and a quirky clothing store filled with overpriced jewelry and maxi skirts. In short, it was as much of a tourist trap as could exist in a small town.
