Quick Hits: Outside the Blog

While I am MIA, I thought I would share with you some of the interesting articles I've been reading lately (although by this time it may all be old news).

In October, I read The Odyssey finally from cover to cover and loved it. In my pre-blogging days, I read and loved Toni Morrison's Beloved. Then I see this article at The Millions about how Beloved draws heavily on The Odyssey, and my mind was blown. Now I really want to re-read Beloved. Great quote from the article: "By making Beloved a reworking of the Odyssey, Toni Morrison puts her story next to Homer’s—placing the lives and struggles of African Americans past and present into an epic context. She places these experiences alongside a story that is central to Western civilization, thereby asserting their own worthiness and importance in that tradition."

Paravion Press features the most awesome postcards I have ever seen: "Each title is the size of a standard postcard. The first page is dedicated 'to your correspondence' and left blank for you to write an introductory note before you share the story. Our books are produced in a limited edition, printed on fine paper and individually hand-finished. Each title is supplied in a custom-designed envelope, ready for you to mail onward.
We also include a postcard and bookmark from our bookshop." How awesome is that? Postcard sized stories you can send to your friends.

I find Ricky Gervais funny, and his explanation of why he's an atheist is at once insightful and hilarious. The part that really got me: "As an atheist, I see nothing “wrong” in believing in a god. I don’t think there is a god, but belief in him does no harm. If it helps you in any way, then that’s fine with me. It’s when belief starts infringing on other people’s rights when it worries me. I would never deny your right to believe in a god. I would just rather you didn’t kill people who believe in a different god, say. Or stone someone to death because your rulebook says their sexuality is immoral. It’s strange that anyone who believes that an all-powerful all-knowing, omniscient power responsible for everything that happens, would also want to judge and punish people for what they are."

So there are three articles I think you should read. Let me know what you think of them!