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“The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture on the verge of descending into barbarism.” Hannah Arendt

Please count me in!

me please

I know Jackson is much acclaimed, but for me, she always undercooks her ending, where one more short, pointed sentence would make it clearer but no less chilling. I think The Lottery is her best, with the gradually dawning awful realisation. I...

I've just started We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson. I kept seeing it recommended and I thought I'd give it a go, having read and enjoyed her acclaimed short story, The Lottery. So far, so good! I'm intrigued by the set up...

Saltwater Mansions and Other Untold Stories by David Whitehouse has had rave reviews and, for once, perhaps justifiably. I certainly enjoyed it. I didn't go along with the reviewer who raved about the quality of the author's prose, though. It was...

Well, here is what I am beginning tonight: From our very own Litopian, Eva. It arrived in the mail today!

Nearly finished Deeper Water by Robert Whitlow - an Amazon Prime book of the month. Not being of a religious, bent there are a little too many religion references for me , but that is deflected by the style of writing. It easy to read, so I...

I think this is an important book, revealing things more people should know about Facebook (or Meta). Everyone, in fact. Careless People: A Story of Where I Used to Work by Facebook's former global public-policy director Sarah Wynn-Williams...

Rebel Skies by Ann Sei Lin (YA SFF): Brilliant! Great concept grippingly written. Kurara can craft paper into anything just using her mind. She wants to hone her skills so that she can join the Imperial Crafters and hunt Shikigami (paper...

I've been listening to the audiobook of The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker. Marvelous narration from Arthur Morey. Totally engaging from beginning to end, it mainly uses examples from non-fiction, but most of it applies to fiction too. If you...

If there is room, I'd love to watch and experience. I am not ready to submit a WIP, but I love this part of Litopia.

The Binturong Problem by Laura Rikono The Challenge of Naming Invented Creatures If I told you I’d seen a binturong, chances are you’d stare at me blankly. What if I told you I’d seen a bearcat? You’d probably imagine some sort of bear-cat...

Please.