The cover of Confessions of a Pagan Nun by Kate Horsley is arresting for someone like me — a romantic who is entranced by the mystery and ideals of early monastic life. It shows a clochan, a beehive-shaped rock hut set beside a small stream and barren, rocky hills in the distance. Built of dry …
January 5, 2010 – 9:49 pm
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By David Morton
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Posted in Books, History, The monks, Writing
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Tagged clochans, Confessions of a Pagan Nun, early Christianity, Ireland, Irish History, Kate Horsley, monasticism, Shambhala Publications, Skellig Michael, St. Augustine, St. Patrick, tuaths
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It’s satisfying, isn’t it, when a book you read leads the way to others — where one opens your eyes to another topic, another author or another passion and off you go. I’m happy to report that the joy of discovery is still alive and well in the mind of this 50-plus reader.
A few months …
October 8, 2009 – 7:30 am
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By David Morton
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Posted in Books, Films, History, Inspiration, Medievalism, Poetry, The Novel, Writing
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Tagged Andrew Davidson, Dante, Dante Alighieri, Divine Comedy, Inferno, Italian Literature, The Gargoyle, Virgil
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It was a real honour to be asked by Anna Richenda, recently, if I would review her new self-published novel, The Saint and the Fasting Girl. As a fan of HistoryFish.net her expansive website devoted to medieval religious topics, I had been reading progress reports in her blog about the book’s publication for some time. …
August 7, 2009 – 2:04 pm
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By David Morton
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Posted in Books, History, Medievalism, The Novel, The Writer's Struggle, Writing
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Tagged Anna Richenda, book review, fiction, Henry VIII, historyfish.net, medieval, novels, Saint and the Fasting Girl
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As is so often the case, a recent New Yorker cartoon took a medieval story to heart and added a 21st century twist to great comic effect. In this case, Rapunzel* has let down her hair, as the fairy tale goes, but she has inadvertently foiled the prince’s attempt to climb her prison tower using …
July 5, 2009 – 5:50 pm
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By David Morton
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Posted in Chaucer, History, Inspiration, Medievalism
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Tagged All In The Family, Archie Bunker, Brothers Grimm, Canterbury Tales, Chaucer's Triumph, Edith Bunker, Garry O'Connor, Geoffrey Chaucer, Medievalism, middle ages, Middle English, New Yorker, Phillipa Roet, Rapunzel, Wife of Bath
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History, as they say, repeats itself. The recent protests in Iran are the latest incarnation of an old story: the uprising of citizens against the perceived injustices of a political regime. Sometimes they succeed in bringing significant change, often they fail. But no matter the consequences, these rebellions are never really forgotten. They may be …
June 28, 2009 – 2:37 pm
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By David Morton
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Posted in England, History, Uncategorized
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Tagged Archbishop of Canterbury, Blackheath, Chumbawamba, Cutty Wren, France, Froissart, Iran protests, Jack Straw, John Ball, John of Gaunt, King Richard II, Margaret Thatcher, Myanmar, Peasants Revolt, poll tax, Tiananmen Square, Walsingham, war, Wat Tyler, When Adam delved, Youtube
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I’ve been reading a terrific book about the Middle Ages, recently, by an American scholar with a great sweeping view of history about the powerful influence of medievalism on the contemporary world. I’ve always found the imaginative influence of the Middle Ages captivating: Chaucer’s pilgrims, the wild behaviours of feudal lords, the gritty view of …
June 25, 2009 – 6:30 am
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By David Morton
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Posted in Books, History, Inspiration, Medievalism
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Tagged Camille Paglia, Dante, David Attenborough, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Giotto, Harold Bloom, Hildegard of Bingen, Hinges of History, History, Medievalism, Mysteries of the Middle Ages, Peter Abelard, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas Cahill
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I wish I could say my recent hiatus from blog posting had resulted in a prodigious output in pages for my novel. Alas, nothing of the sort. I had taken time off work a few months ago that was a great boon to the novel, but my return to teaching has overwhelmed me. Not only …
