Category Archives: books

A Footnote to Frankenstein: Paracelsus and his Introduction of Laudanum to Western Medicine

Posted on July 2, 2015 by forstegrupp

In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, Victor is set on his scientific quest to create new life in part by reading the words of Paraselsus, whose full name was Philip Theophrastus Bombast von Hohenheim (d. 1541). He rebelled against common ideas … Continue reading →

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Stop! Don’t Sully Your Thoughts with Some Scholar’s Ideas about Jane Eyre!

Posted on June 13, 2015 by forstegrupp

For the last couple of days, I have been reading Jane Eyre (again) in preparation for teaching it in the fall. I am reading from the Norton critical edition and before starting the first chapter, read Adrienne Rich’s article “Jane … Continue reading →

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Reading about Mary Sutter

Posted on March 27, 2015 by forstegrupp

When I was visiting friends in Decorah, I spied Robin Oliveira’s novel My Name is Mary Sutter on a coffee table. I had finished already the YA novel Flora and Ulysses by Kate Di Camillo, which is a delightful magical … Continue reading →

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Common Good Bookstore in Minneapolis

Posted on March 26, 2015 by forstegrupp

Garrison Keillor opened The Common Good book shop in 2006 and then he moved it to a larger location in 2012 on Snelling Avenue. This independent book shop does not stock the usual selection of items — no big table of … Continue reading →

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How to imagine an affair between Edgar Allen Poe and Francis Osgood?

Posted on December 16, 2013 by forstegrupp

That is what Lynn Cullen’s book Mrs. Poe creates. It is told from the point of view of Francis Osgood, who was herself a poet. It begins in the winter of 1845 and end in the winter of 1847. I … Continue reading →

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A modern “Artist of the Beautiful:” Davis Esterly

Posted on October 22, 2013 by forstegrupp

When the Harvard Magazine arrives, I usually sigh a bit (mentally) and shrug. The articles are interesting but they seem like such a rah-rah effort to advertise Harvard’s greatness. I will usually try to read at least one — because … Continue reading →

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An Initial Response to "The Great Arab Conquests"

Posted on February 11, 2009 by forstegrupp

As part of a course on Middle Eastern Literature that I am teaching — or rather workshopping with the students, we all are reading one book independently. I selected from our school library — bless the librarians for ordering such … Continue reading →

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Istanbul as a Setting for Mystery

Posted on February 25, 2008 by forstegrupp

This mystery by Jenny White is her first novel after a number of non-fiction books on Turkish society and history. She supposedly has a professorship in Anthropology at BU. The book was saturated with intimate details of Turkish dress, customs, … Continue reading →

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