In preparation for the Texas Sacred Harp Singing Convention later this month, I’ve been trying to dig a little deeper into the history of the music. I’ve been shape-note singing for a couple years now, and it seemed a bit shameful that I hadn’t read much about its roots. The Makers of the Sacred Harp…
Tag: non-fiction
“Dalekmania”
When the first “Dr. Who” episode aired in 1963, people were immediately hooked. For the uninitiated, the show follows the adventures of a being called the Doctor, who is actually an alien from a planet called Gallifrey. He travels through time and space in his TARDIS (Time and Relative Dimension in Space), most often with…
Review: The Tipping Point
From fashion trends to crime rates, why do major changes in society seem to happen so suddenly? What is it that pushes a brand into the limelight, or causes crime rates to plummet? Malcolm Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, compares these changes to an outbreak of…
“First Position”
Every year thousands of dancers gather to compete at the Youth America Grand Prix, the world’s largest ballet competition; kids from 8-19 years old compete for medals, scholarships, and contracts with the world’s best dance companies. First Position follows six dancers from different countries as they prepare for the semi-finals and finals. Every dancer is…
Review: A Jane Austen Education
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in pursual of a Ph.D. in English Literature must be more interested in Joyce, Conrad, Faulkner, and Nabokov than in 19th century British literature. And such a man is William. Give him Madame Bovary, give him On the Road, but please don’t give him Jane…