Essays & Musings
What We’ve Been Thinking About
Thoughts on books, reading, culture, and the literary life.
the ask@AAR: Why have there been so few Steals and Deals lately?
May 27, 2022You may have noticed that there’ve been very few Steals and Deals posted in the past week. Blame me. I am taking a long awaited vacation and have been trying…
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the ask@AAR: What’s the greatest work of art you’ve ever seen?
May 20, 2022Yeah, yeah, I know. This is not a romance topic. BUT. I am on vacation with Dr. Feelgood and we spent some time today in the British Museum where we…
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the ask@AAR: What series have the worst endings?
May 13, 2022Dr. Feelgood and I just watched the final half season of Ozark, something I’d been wildly looking forward to, and it was a serious let down. I didn’t like hardly…
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Will authors keep their e-books alive?
May 11, 2022Disclaimer: I am not an author and have only a generalized sense of what is involved in regaining the rights to one’s work. I keep, at Amazon, lists of books…
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the ask@AAR: What issues matter to you in elections?
May 6, 2022I’ve been reading endless articles about whether or not and, if so, how the probable overturning of Roe v. Wade in the United States could influence the 2022 midterms and…
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What’s your favorite opposites attract romance?
May 2, 2022A while back, a friend who doesn’t didn’t read romance asked me to recommend a historical romance. I suggested Laura Kinsale’s Flowers from the Storm. I ran into her this…
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the ask@AAR: Who’s your favorite family in romance?
April 29, 2022One of the great things about all those Bridgertons–besides more fodder for Netflix seasons–is that Violet and her children are a fun brood to read about/watch. One of my favorite…
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High concept TV is…?
April 25, 2022I am three episodes into HBOMax’s mini-series, Station Eleven, based on the award winning and best selling novel by Emily St. John Mandel. I haven’t read the book, which, I…
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the ask@AAR: I am a cranky old lady, not a cranky middle aged lady, right?
April 22, 2022I will be 61 next month–woo hoo! I was discussing my life with my daughter and when I referred to myself as an old lady, she said that was absurd….
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the ask@ AAR: Do all artists deserve our support?
April 15, 2022Do I have to support/promote the art of someone I dislike or whose thoughts/actions I dislike or disapprove of? Here’s why I ask. There’s an author who’s been really nasty…
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Something’s coming….
April 12, 2022As AAR has aged, the way our readers interact with us has changed. Over the past five years, those who read AAR on their mobile devices have now surpassed those…
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the ask@AAR: What matters most in true love?
April 8, 2022I was at a wedding this past weekend and found myself in an interesting discussion. My tablemate, a woman a bit older than me, married to her high school sweetheart,…
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What Should Surrogacy Require?
There are no rules. Maybe there should be.
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Sometimes a name is just a name
on offense, accommodation, and the value of getting the facts right
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A Novel Is Not a Safe Space
Books are allowed to offend you. You are allowed to close them. Everybody survives.
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