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  Thomas Hardy - Christmas Carollings

  Andrew Norman

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  A tradition at Christmas was for the choir of local musicians and singers to assemble at the Hardys’ cottage, prior to setting out into the snow to do the rounds of local farms, homesteads, and manor house, in order to entertain their occupants. Hardy recreated this magical scene in Under the Greenwood Tree, published in 1872. 
  In the days when labouring classes worked long hours, and for the majority, material comforts were small, Christmas was a time (aside from the formalities of necessary religious observance,) for the exchanging of news, folklore, legend and jokes. For those fortunate enough to be invited to the Hardys’ cottage on Christmas Eve, there was the added bonus of food and drink to feed the body, and music – home-made of course – to lift the spirits and nourish the soul.  
  Hardy’s descriptions of such Christmases, as were celebrated by himself and his family, together with his colourful portrayals of characters – in particular the members of the ‘Mellstock Quire’ (Choir,) whom he described as his favourites - have delighted generations of his readers, and continue to do so.  
  This then, is the story of Thomas Hardy and of Christmas; of what that greatest of all Christian festivals meant to him, and of how his beliefs changed as the years progressed.

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  On James Baldwin

  Colm Tóibín

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  Acclaimed Irish novelist Colm Tóibín first read James Baldwin just after turning eighteen. He had completed his first year at an Irish university and was struggling to free himself from a religious upbringing. Inspired by the novel Go Tell It on the Mountain, Tóibín found a writer who would be a lifelong companion and exemplar. 
   
   
   
  From On James Baldwin: 
   
   
   
  Baldwin was interested in the hidden and dramatic areas in his own being, and was prepared as a writer to explore difficult truths about his own private life. In his fiction, he had to battle for the right of his protagonists to choose or influence their destinies. He knew about guilt and rage and bitter privacies in a way that few of his White novelist contemporaries did. And this was not simply because he was Black and homosexual; the difference arose from the very nature of his talent, from the texture of his sensibility. "All art," he wrote, "is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story, to vomit the anguish up." 
   
   
   
  On James Baldwin is a magnificent contemporary author's tribute to one of his most consequential literary progenitors.

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  3 Stories About - Class & Status...

  Guy de Maupassant, Katherine...

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  There is something about the number 3.    
   
  The Ancient Greeks believed 3 was the perfect number, and in China 3 has always been a lucky number, and they know a thing or two.   
   
  Most religions also have 3 this and 3 that and, of course, in these more modern times, three’s a crowd may be too many, except when it’s a ménage à trois.  It seems good things usually come in threes. 
   
  Whatever history and culture says WE think 3, a hat-trick of stories, is a great number to explore themes and literary avenues that classic authors were so adept at creating. 
   
  From their pens to your your ears. 
   
  01 - 3 Stories About - Class and Status 
  02 - The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield 
  03 - The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant 
  04 - The Lost Reflection by E T A Hoffman

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  Earth Almanac - A Year of...

  Anonymous

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  Noted nature writer Ted Williams invites readers along on a year-long immersion in the wild and fleeting moments of the natural world, from winter candy and spring quackers to summer’s scarlet farewell and autumn reveilles. This beautifully crafted collection of short, seasonal essays combines in-depth information with evocative descriptions of nature’s marvels and mysteries. Williams explains the weather conditions that bring out the brightest reds in autumn leaves, how hungry wolf spiders catch their prey, and why American goldfinches wait until late July or August to build their nests. In the tradition of Thoreau, Carson, and Leopold, Ted Williams’s writing stands as a testament to the delicate balance of nature’s resilience and fragility, and inspires readers to experience the natural world for themselves and to become advocates for protecting and preserving the amazing diversity and activity found there.

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  Above the Abyss - Finding...

  Friedi Kühne, Andy Lewis

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  Step out over the abyss and discover the incredible story of professional slackliner Friedi Kühne overcoming personal limits, grappling with mental toughness, and achieving greatness from thousands of feet in the air.Slacklining is an ever-evolving extreme sport in which an athlete must walk across a thin line of flexible webbing from one point to another. What once began as a trendy hobby—with a person balancing just a foot or two off the ground between two trees—has now evolved into intense feats of athleticism, including performing flips, twists, and other tricks across the slackline (tricklining) and achieving incredible balancing acts from, for some intrepid athletes, heights upwards of 6,000 feet (highlining).In Above the Abyss, author and professional slackliner Friedi Kühne dives into his slackline journey, from doing tricks as a kid on trampolines and park benches to trying his first highline at 18 years old. Along the way, Kühne learns how to train his body to achieve balance, find focus, and stay resilient. His love of slacklining takes him all over the world as he competes for world records, achieves personal milestones, and ultimately discovers how physical and mental limits can be overcome if we don’t allow our fears to hold us back.From nail-biting descriptions of highline adventures to practical advice and strategies that have carried Kühne between mountains and skyscrapers, Above the Abyss captures the passion, struggles, and determination at the center of one man’s pursuit of slackline greatness.

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  Marcus Aurelius - A Roman...

  Kelly Mass

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  Marcus Aurelius Antoninus was a Stoic philosopher and the Roman Emperor from 161 to 180 CE. He is remembered as the last of the Five Good Emperors, a term coined by Niccolò Machiavelli over a thousand years later, and as the final ruler of the Pax Romana, the long period of relative peace and stability that the Roman Empire experienced from 27 BCE to 180 CE. Throughout his political career, Marcus held the position of Roman consul in 140, 145, and 161, marking his steady ascent to power.  
  Born during the reign of Emperor Hadrian, Marcus was the son of Marcus Annius Verus, a praetor, and Domitia Calvilla, a wealthy heiress. His father passed away when he was only three years old, leaving him to be raised primarily by his mother and grandfather. Recognizing Marcus' potential, Hadrian ensured his future by naming his uncle, Antoninus Pius, as heir following the unexpected death of Hadrian’s initial choice, Aelius Caesar, in 138 CE. As part of this arrangement, Antoninus was required to adopt both Marcus and Aelius' son, Lucius Verus. When Hadrian died later that year, Antoninus became emperor, and Marcus was positioned as his successor. Over the following decades, Marcus received an extensive education, studying Greek and Latin under renowned scholars such as Herodes Atticus and Marcus Cornelius Fronto. In 145 CE, he married Antoninus' daughter, Faustina the Younger, solidifying his connection to the imperial family.  
  Upon Antoninus Pius’ death in 161, Marcus ascended to the throne alongside his adopted brother, Lucius Verus, marking the first time in Roman history that the empire was ruled by co-emperors. His reign was defined by continuous military conflicts.

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